The Seven Seas of Rhye
by ShadoKat
Summary: Ignore the title! It has nothing to do with the content!  This is what I think should have happened between Eric and Sookie at the end of the season. He did not remember their time together, but he was damn sure going to find out!  M for ESN and kinky sex
1. Chapter 1

Now, I didn't like the way AB and company ruined Season 4, did you?  
>Once again, all of Eric's goodness was somehow glossed over...<br>(Even though Mr. Skarsgard played him adorkably perfect, didn't he?)  
>Making Bill king? Insult to injury...<br>Sookie still loves Bill? YOU GOTTA BE F*CKING KIDDING!  
>Dumping Eric because she can't choose between them? WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU, GIRL?<br>RIP and good riddance to Nan Flanagan, Tommy Mickens, and hopefully Tara Thornton too. (Please, if there is a God!)

This is what I think should have happened between Eric and Sookie, even though the show character (Sookie) is so stupid that she doesn't deserve Eric. Liberties have been taken with the timeline. Eric had amnesia for a month with Sookie, not just a few days. This is approx. three weeks after he regained his memory. She should just be stuck with Bill, let him lie and cheat on her. But I digress...

The title of this story has nothing to do with Vampires, Weres, Fairies, or any of the other creatures/subjects in our fandom. This is the title of one of my favorite songs by **Queen**, and it's modeled after one line from that song:

**You are mine, I possess you  
>I belong to you forever...<strong>

Don't you think that's appropriate for Eric to say to Sookie, or at least think?

Please enjoy the story! At the end, I'd like you to tell me if I should continue or leave it here. This is unbeta'd and published without consulting any of the wonderful authors I work with. Please forgive me, ladies! All mistakes are mine.

Of course, Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries, and all characters contained within are the property of Charlaine Harris. I own nothing. No copyright infringement is intended.

WARNING: Eric has a little darkness. Extreme sexual content and kinky sex throughout. Do not continue if you are under the age of legal consent where you live. You have been warned!

Now, without further adieu...

* * *

><p>Sookie was sound asleep, so it was impossible for her to see the sharp blue eyes that watched her from across the room. The beautiful, powerful Vampire Eric Northman leaned negligently against the door frame, his arms folded, his brow uncharacteristically furrowed. Since regaining his memory a few weeks ago, he had been troubled, unable to get her out of his mind.<p>

She refused to talk to him, and it infuriated him! He had called her at least a dozen times and she never answered. She didn't return his calls. Tonight had been the last straw for him. NOBODY blew off Eric Northman and got away with it. He was finished chasing her and she was done running. He was going to make sure of it. He had stormed into Merlotte's bar demanding to see her, only to learn that she no longer worked there. Frankly, he was glad to see the end of that job for her. If he had his way, she would never work again, or she would work for him at Fangtasia.

She began to stir. Sookie opened her eyes, a strange feeling overtaking her. There was some part of a dream that she remembered… Or had there been a dream? What had caused her to wake? She stretched her legs beneath the bedcovers and turned over… And there he was. The man she loved. The last man in the world she wanted to see. She opened her mouth but nothing came out, so she closed it and blinked at him, a question in her eyes.

Eric was momentarily stunned by the full force of her eyes, now open and silently asking why he was there. He caved to a few seconds of insecurity, but then a thought occurred to him and he straightened his back; his resolve had returned. A new revelation had just happened for Eric. For the last several minutes he had been silently compelling her to wake, never thinking that it would work. Sookie was immune to glamour and he had tried to compel her before without success. Tonight, she had responded!

Pam had told him that he had stayed at Sookie's, actually his, house during his brief period of amnesia. That had explained why he had woken in the sleeping chamber he had built in their house. He was sure that something had happened between them. Something Sookie did not want to talk about; the reason she was avoiding him. He couldn't imagine staying in the same house with her and nothing happening. The house smelled of sex but it was faint now; it wasn't recent. This agitated him. He didn't like being unsure about things. Even if he hadn't remembered who he was, the attraction between them had been strong from the day they met. Sookie wouldn't admit it, of course, but it was true. He could be extremely persuasive when he wanted something, or someone, and oh, how he wanted her! She thought he wanted to bed her just as another conquest, for bragging rights. She was very wrong. She was special. He wanted her by his side as he walked through the world. He couldn't even imagine one day in his life without at least seeing her, and he wanted to be much, much closer. He wanted her to be his, forever.

Sookie finally found her voice. "Eric?" she asked sleepily. "What are you doing here?"

He pushed away from the door frame and sauntered toward her, knowing how good he looked. His long blonde hair was freshly washed and braided in a neat herringbone style. Black jeans covered his magnificent ass and well-muscled legs. He wore shiny black motorcycle boots and a thick leather belt. A muted blue-purple silk shirt under a black leather blazer completed the ensemble. He thought that Sookie had a great poker face, because her expression remained neutral and her eyes never left his.

She pulled the sheet up to cover herself as he sat on the side of her bed. He did not like that one bit! He wanted to tear the sheet away from her and pull her into his arms, kiss away all her protests and have his way with her. Something about sitting there on her bed felt strangely familiar. He had no right to manhandle her the way he wanted to, or did he?

He made his decision about what he was going to do here. "We need to talk, Sookie. You have been avoiding me," he accused her, affecting a hurt tone of voice. "I had to, how do they say? Get the drop on you." He smiled, only just keeping his fangs in check.

"You're right!" she admitted sourly. "I don't want to talk to you! Why don't you take the hint?" She let her voice show annoyance, but that wasn't what she really felt. She was in danger of crying, but years of schooling herself not to show her feelings, because of her telepathy, just barely kept the tears at bay.

The night Eric had regained his memory had been one of the worst nights of her life. He'd climbed up out of his hidey-hole and made a tasteless, sarcastic remark that had left no doubt that he'd forgotten all that had happened between them. She'd been in the process of running into his arms but a strange vibe had made her stop short and she'd almost tripped. That was when he'd made the remark and she'd known. She'd only just kept it together while they'd waited for Pam to pick him up. For some reason he hadn't wanted to fly. She had cried for that entire night, and the next day. Now here he was, insinuating himself into her life again. She couldn't let him in again. She would give him nothing!

Eric, on the other hand, had vowed not to leave until they got to the truth of the matter. He had opened his phone and was texting Pam to tell her not to expect him back until he got back. In other words, don't call, don't text.

At Fangtasia, Pam rolled her eyes in exasperation at his texts. She'd been glad when the two of them had finally fucked, hoping that Eric could get Sookie out of his system once and for all. He hadn't been normal since he'd met her. Since the amnesia had cleared, he'd only become more obsessed.

"Whatever," she texted back. "Don't come back until you fuck her." She'd almost added "again" to the text but stopped herself. She actually liked Sookie, for a human. It was a girl thing. It was up to Sookie to decide if and when to tell him.

As Eric snapped his phone shut, Sookie was angry that he'd disturbed her sleep only to ignore her and play with his phone. "Why don't you go tell her in person?" she snapped, knowing it was Pam. She wasn't jealous of Pam. Pam's and Eric's sexual relationship had ended long long ago. Now they were a lot like father and daughter, but she would never tell them that. They'd be embarrassed and deny it.

This time his fangs did come down. "I am not leaving until we set some things straight!" he snapped back.

Unfazed, unafraid, she climbed out of bed on the opposite side of where he sat and started to head for the door. Eric grabbed her arm a little bit harder than he meant to. "Eric! You're hurting me! Let go!" she yelled, trying unsuccessfully to pull away from him.

He knew he should apologize but he was too agitated to say the words. "Where are you going?" he demanded, softening his words by gently taking her hand and caressing the arm he'd grabbed so roughly.

She looked away, still barely keeping her emotions under control. "Human needs, you know," she said softly.

He let go of her, nodding his head. He was too preoccupied with his own emotions, surprised at how strong they were, to notice her deception.

She walked to the bathroom and closed the door, leaving a slightly stunned Eric to ponder the depth of his feelings. But after a few minutes, the silence behind the bathroom door caught his attention.

"Sookie?" he called, walking to the door. No answer. "Sookie, are you all right?" He knocked and heard nothing, so he opened the door. All he found was an open window with a very tall tree outside. He roared in anger and flew to the front door of the house at Vampire speed. She was running in the direction of "King" Compton's house, almost to the edge of her property. He took to the air.

Sookie hadn't heard his angry roar, nor had she seen him on the porch when she turned around a split second too late to check. She had no idea what was coming.

Eric flew swiftly across the lawn, high enough to be concealed by the darkness. His eyes zeroed in on his prey, and he swooped down, plucking her cleanly off the grass and clamping a hand over her mouth when she would have screamed.

"Be silent!" he hissed at her as he reversed direction back toward the house. He never slowed down as he raced them back inside, closed and locked the door, and stopped on the landing of the staircase between the two floors. He knew that this was the only place in the house that could not be seen from the outside.

She was trying to pry his hand away from her mouth and remove herself from his grasp. He gathered both wrists in one hand and held them together as he pressed her tightly into the corner from behind. She squealed in protest but stopped trying to break away from him. Eric had to pause as a fleeting thought entered his mind and just as quickly left like tendrils of smoke. He wondered if he'd held her this way before and, if so, what they had been doing. He filed that away for later discussion.

Eric used his Vampire hearing to listen to the night to see if an alarm had been raised at the "palace." He still thought of Bill Compton being King as a major joke and sneered derisively at the thought. Sookie didn't see his facial expression but felt something deep inside that made her wonder if she was somehow sensing his feelings. She, too, had just had the thought that Bill should never have been made King. Only the crickets and bullfrogs disturbed the silence of the night. Satisfied that nobody was going to show up to investigate what was going on over here, Eric slowly removed his hand from Sookie's mouth.

"Eric!" she started to say something else in a voice that showed her anger, but he clamped his hand right back where it had been.

"Quietly, Sookie. Promise?" he said in a voice that could melt steel. She nodded after glaring at him for a few seconds and he took his hand away.

"What are we doing, Eric?" she demanded softly but firmly, still making no effort to pull away from him. He put one hand on the wall and turned her to face him. Her face tilted up to look at him and he was momentarily speechless. Neither of them noticed how his fingers absently stroked her back, or how her hands clutched at his shirt as though she needed his support. He recovered quickly and reached into his jacket, pulling out a small black box. She stared at it as though she'd never seen a remote control in her life. "What is that for?"

"Watch," he said simply. He punched in a long series of numbers, and a mechanical sound began somewhere above their heads. As Eric watched with pride, Sookie with horror, dark shutters appeared on the outside of every door and window. They came down from the tops very quickly, effectively sealing the house off from the outside world in less than a second. "Do you like it?" he asked, magnanimously sweeping his hand around to indicate the room at large.

Sookie turned to watch as all traces of light from outside were blacked out by the shutters that appeared to be something other than metal. She looked at Eric in disbelief. "Why did you put shutters all over my house?"

"MY house," he corrected her, earning nothing but a dirty look. She was still waiting for an answer. "For your safety, Sookie," he responded as though it should be obvious to her.

"Well, thank you, I guess," she pursed her lips. "But why are you showing them to me now? I suppose they make the house plenty dark but you have plenty of time to get home before the sun comes up." She was guessing at that, hoping it was true.

He cocked his head. "I am home, Sookie, or have you forgotten?"

"I don't understand!" she exclaimed, completely misunderstanding what he meant. "You told me before your, well…." She didn't know how to describe his period of amnesia. "You said I could stay here!"

"Did I say anything about making you leave?" he wanted to know.

"Well, no, but…"

"But nothing!" he told her. "We have things to discuss, and I am not leaving here until you tell me what went on while I stayed here. And neither are you!" He paused to let that sink in, knowing it wouldn't make her very happy. He finally moved back so that he was no longer crowding her.

"You left here three weeks ago," she told him, now allowing her voice to show her pain and frustration, finally over his little episode of whatever this was, "with no thought of what you were leaving!" She stood tall, pointing her finger at him. "YOU left! You didn't stick around to talk to me or even to thank me! Now you're back having a temper tantrum about ME avoiding YOU? NOW you are interested in what went on here. You're a real piece of work, Eric! I don't have to talk to you! I have nothing to say!" She folded her arms and turned her back on him, heading down the stairs and away from him. He was in front of her in an instant, blocking her path.

"Where do you think you are going?" he demanded, his hands back on her shoulders again. She shrugged them off.

"I would like a cup of tea, thank-you-very-much, since you've seen fit to wake me up in the middle of the fucking night! Do you mind?" she snapped.

He made a huge deal out of stepping aside and bowing her in the direction of the kitchen. "By all means, my princess!" he said sarcastically, then trailed an inch behind her as she passed him. He sat negligently in one of her kitchen chairs, arms folded in a posture of stubborn indignance, and watched her heat water for tea. Eric did not let anyone speak to him that way. Most humans he would drain, Vampires would spend some time in silver chains in the secret room under Fangtasia. Why did he let her get away with it? He should at least punish her for her attitude, but knew he would not. The silence stretched between them.

All Sookie could think was that he was back and she had no idea what to do with him. She was pissed as hell at him for leaving the way he had, going back to his life without a thought for the disruption to her life he had caused. She had thought his declarations of love were genuine, but how could he have just forgotten them? That kind of love didn't just go away. Amnesia or not, it left its mark on your heart. Did Eric even have a heart? For a few weeks she'd thought he did."

Of course, he had come racing back to her side as she'd cried over the remains of her best friend Tara in her kitchen. He had done everything. Disposed of that good-for-nothing murdering Debbie Pelt's body, gotten rid of her car, and cleaned the kitchen. Bill had been nowhere to be seen. Jason had been beside himself, finally realizing that he'd had feelings for Tara, and had been no help. Eric had been her only solace, and had held Sookie while she cried for her friend. The next day Sookie had set it all aside, vowing to get on with her life, what was left of it, and it had been no surprise to her that Eric hadn't come back.

She'd planned a future with Eric in that month when he'd turned sweet and loving without the memories of his past life. But not all of him had been gone, and she'd had the delicious marks of living and loving with a sexually dominant Vampire to prove it. Eric had taken her places that Bill never had, and she'd hoped to go there many times in the future. At those thoughts, she felt a distinct throb in parts down south and felt moisture building up inside her core. She tried her best to cover it up, hoping that he didn't notice.

Behind her, Eric's head snapped up as he felt the turn his Sookie's thoughts had taken. His fangs ran out and he discreetly sniffed the air, easily catching the faint traces of her arousal. Where had this mood come from? She wasn't happy with him, as was evidenced by the way she slammed doors and drawers and almost broke her Gran's dishes throwing them around. He had only guessed at the relationship that had gone on between them while he'd been here without his memories. But as she was aroused, he also felt her sadness in his heart. What did this mean?

Sookie had perfected her poker face her entire life, so when she turned to face Eric, there was no trace of embarrassment, sadness, or excitement. Instead, she was aloof, determined to hold herself above what she felt for him until she knew what the hell he wanted.

"So?" she finally spoke, walking daintily to the table to sit across from him with her tea.

Eric thought she looked extremely proper and ladylike for the thoughts he knew she'd been having. He wanted to lay her across the table and decipher those thoughts, but he decided to tread lightly for the time being. He WOULD touch her eventually, in all the ways he wanted to and then some. Somehow he would find a way in. He was determined.

"So." He responded by raising his brows. Sookie noticed that he'd thrown his jacket over the back of the chair. That meant he planned on staying. She sighed.

"Why are you sitting there looking like I ought to have something to tell you?" she wanted to know. "You're the one who showed up and woke me up out of a good night's sleep. The ball's in your court, not mine." She took a sip of her tea, her hands fidgeting as they formed a circle around the cup, which meant that she was very uneasy.

But wait, Eric thought. How did he know that? He didn't know Sookie well enough to know her tiny little mannerisms. Did he? He would never admit to anyone how confused he was. Sights, smells, and thoughts had come to him in the past weeks. They reminded him of Sookie. A woman's perfume he recognized as hers. When had he learned what perfume she wore? A customer at Fangtasia had tickled his date a certain way, just the way that drove Sookie mad. How did he know that? Kissing the soft spot behind her left ear made her smile a smile meant only for him, or did it? It had driven him crazy! He was determined to find out if he was right about these things, and others.

While Eric had had his introspective moment, Sookie had decided she'd had enough. He could either say what he came here to say, or he could leave. "Eric!" she exclaimed, drawing him out of his thoughts. "You may be a nocturnal creature, but I am not. You obviously had a reason to come here. Please, just say whatever it is you have to say or get the hell out of here and let me go back to bed!"

Eric knew that he was losing his "in," and her patience was almost gone. He would rather not have her openly hostile, because he had no intention of leaving. "Cards on the table?"

"Cards on the table!"

"Fine!" He stood up, taking her tea in one hand and her hand in the other and leading her into the living room, seating her on the couch and handing her the cup. He remained standing, wanting to say his piece from a position of power. He paused dramatically, staring resolutely into her eyes. "I think that something good happened here between us, Sookie! For lack of a better word, something magical. And I am just selfish enough to want to know what it is, and I want to play a part in deciding what we do about it. I am sorry, Sookie, but no, you do not get to do this!" His hand swept the air in front of him for emphasis. "I will not let you pretend that nothing happened! You will not hide from me! You will not take refuge with Compton!" Later he would ask her why she had run from him in the direction of Compton's house, but now was not the time. "Whether you like it or not, neither of us is leaving this house until I know everything that took place here. Do you understand me? EVERYTHING! You will not shut me out. This is why I bought the house. You can no longer rescind my invitation. I can keep other Vampires out, but you can not keep me out." He folded his arms and took on a posture of smug triumph. Sookie didn't think she'd ever heard Eric say so much at one time, ever.

"You can't do this, Eric," she began, hoping to reason with him. She got to her feet. "You can't keep me cooped up in this house! I have things to do. I have a j…"

She never got to finish her sentence because he was instantly in front of her, fangs bared, eyes angry. He took hold of her shoulders when she would have stepped back from him, lifting her chin and forcing her to look at him. "Are you sure that you want to say this to me, Sookie?" His tone was soft, dangerously deceptive. "Think before you speak. I was in Merlotte's not two hours ago looking for you. You no longer work there!" He was going to make this point early in the game and he wanted no misunderstanding. "I despise deceit. I do not tolerate lies of any sort, especially from the few I allow close to me. You, least of all! Now, do you still want to tell me that you have a job to go to?"

She reddened beneath his close scrutiny, embarrassed and more than a little bit afraid. In truth, she hadn't meant to lie. She had worked for Sam Merlotte so long that she hadn't yet gotten used to the fact that he had actually fired her. Not that she didn't deserve it, but that was another conversation. "I'm sorry, Eric," she whispered, turning her head and shaking off his grasp, unable to look him in the eye. "Honestly, I didn't mean to lie to you. It's taking a while to sink in. I've worked for Sam forever, you know? Before that I always had a job, since I was fifteen. It's hard to imagine now…" She didn't know how to continue. A single, fat tear fell from her eye and landed on Eric's wrist.

That was Eric's undoing. He sensed the honesty of her confession and he could not stand to see her cry. Only two women could ever soften his heart with tears. One was his child, Pam, and the other was Sookie. He lifted his wrist, smelled the tear and licked it from his skin before cradling the back of her head in his hand and pulling her close. "I am not trying to frighten you, Sookie," he relented in a gentle voice. "But would it not be wise to begin our time together with a pledge of truth and openness between us?"

Sookie pulled back from him, embarrassed at her emotional display. She began to try to smooth out Eric's shirt. "Look what I've done to your shirt, Eric!" She continued to fuss until he pulled the shirt over his shoulders and flung it across the room.

"It is only a shirt, Dear One," he soothed, suddenly wondering where the endearment had come from. He'd never called her that before, had he? Now it was his turn to draw attention to something else and he said the first thing that came to his mind. "It is late. I feel the dawn approaching." He managed to keep his voice even.

"I washed all the linens from your bed downstairs," she told him, referring to the chamber he had built for himself beneath the house. "I think I got all the blood out…" Only too late did she realize her mistake. This Eric did not remember what had happened down there.

His face once again took on an angry mask. "Blood? Why would there be blood in my chamber? Whose blood is it?" he demanded, gripping her arms a little too tightly.

"Eric! You're hurting me!" she cried, tears streaming in earnest down her face now as both arms felt like he was about to crush them.

He loosened his grip but didn't let go. "Explain!" he ordered. "NOW!"

"Let go of me and I will!" she practically screamed at him. He let go but forced her backwards into the little alcove between the fireplace and a large book case next to it. She was only just barely small enough to fit.

Eric loomed over her, one hand on the fireplace mantle and the other on the bookshelf, leaving her no place to go, or to hide. "Why was there blood in my sleeping chamber?" His voice had risen in volume, something very unusual for Eric. He was normally soft-spoken but there was never any doubt of his age, strength, or power. She had never heard him use this tone with anybody.

"You're scaring me, Eric!" Her voice, on the verge of hysteria, somehow broke through the red haze of Eric's sudden anger. This was Sookie he was talking to. She had done him no harm, nor had she let anyone else do him harm. He trusted her with his life, which was why he'd built a sleeping chamber here in her house.

"All right, Sookie, all right, I am sorry." he said in a quieter, but still firm, tone. He managed to get his fangs to retract with a click. "Now tell me, and leave nothing out!"

She realized that this was as calm as he was going to get, so she struggled to find words that would appease him. "OK well, you know the witch, Marnie, right?" He nodded stiffly, still looming over her but in a less threatening manner. His fangs came back out at mention of the witch who had caused all of this to begin with. "She was crazy, and she had some help from Antonia, the ghost witch who had possessed her." Eric had been briefed about this by "King" Compton, right before they'd disposed of that irritating Nan Flanagan.

"At one time Antonia and Marnie were working together?" he asked. By the time the spell inhibiting Eric's memory had broken, the ghost Antonia had wanted nothing to do with Marnie.

"Yes, Eric," she nodded, then went on. "Antonia knew a spell to make every Vampire for miles around walk into the sun and burn." Eric inhaled loudly through his teeth, knowing how dangerous such a witch could be. He thought he was beginning to grasp the scenario, but he let her continue. "Bill sent away most of the Vampires around here but, well, you refused to leave me." At this she flushed, wondering if Eric would blame her for the injury he had sustained during this time.

Eric was starting to relax, and he reached out to stroke her cheek. She covered his hand with her own.

"Bill brought over a bunch of silver chains to tie you down to your bed so you wouldn't walk into the sun. He and Jessica stayed at his place and did the same thing." She looked down at the floor again, hoping that Eric wouldn't notice the fresh tears welling from her eyes. Of course he did.

"Why do you cry?" he asked her softly.

"It hurt you. A lot," she told him, her voice barely audible. "You're so strong, and I had to put an awful lot of them on you. When I thought I was done you made me put on more."

He lifted her chin gently. "Compton dropped off a bunch of silver chains and made you put them on me?" At her nod, his level of respect for their monarch dropped even lower, if that was possible.

Sookie couldn't help but cry harder as she related the rest of the story. "When the spell came, you tried to get up, but you couldn't. You screamed at me to take the chains off. You said you didn't care if you burned and…" she paused. "…died." The last word was only audible to Eric because of his Vampire hearing.

"I am sorry, Sookie," he apologized again, his voice sincere and emotional.

She sniffled and shook her head. "But that isn't the worst of it."

'How could it get any worse?' he thought to himself.

She continued, haltingly. "Finally, the spell was over. We could tell because you weren't trying to get up any more. After the sun went down we knew it was safe, so I started pulling chains off." The tears continued, and she no longer bothered with trying to wipe them. He did that for her, brushing below her eyes gently with his thumbs every few seconds. He thought he knew what was next, and he was right.

"Every time I pulled one off, a chunk of your skin went with it. Mostly your wrists, hands, a little bit on your stomach…" She touched him below his belly button, above the waistband of his low slung jeans where he had been hurt. "But then we got to your neck." She shuddered, remembering. "When I finally got all the chains off, there was no skin left. I could see everything inside!"

Eric had seen a lot of blood and gore in his time on this earth. He had caused a great deal of it too, so he knew perfectly well what Sookie was talking about. He reached up and felt his throat, and it felt perfect to him. "How did I heal?" he wanted to know.

"Well, I had true blood in the fridge but it wouldn't have helped. I was afraid to leave you alone in case somebody came and tried to hurt you. That left only…"

"You," he whispered, his touch almost reverent now as he cupped her cheeks with his hands and drew her out of the alcove. There was no doubt in his mind that Sookie's blood had healed him. He started to put his arms around her, when something occurred to him – and what a horror it was. "Sookie!" he exclaimed suddenly. "Did I force you? Did I hurt you?" He pulled her head to one side and then the other, checking for scarring that would have occurred if a hungry Vampire had torn your throat out. He checked her wrists, the insides of her elbows, and then he started to lift her nightgown to look for signs of vicious bite marks anywhere else.

"Eric!" she tried in vain to keep up with his hands as they touched her while he looked her over. "Eric!" she cried louder. "Eric!" she tried again. "Stop it, Eric!"

He was still lifting her nightgown and was about to let go when something caught his attention. Faster than Sookie could move to stop him, he grabbed her left knee and pulled her leg out from under her. She was forced to grab his other arm to keep from falling, but then she realized what he was looking at.

There, on her inner thigh, were two sets of nearly-healed bite marks. Eric was staring at them, wide-eyed in disbelief. 'Oh, shit!' Sookie thought to herself. 'What is he going to think?' She stared at him helplessly as his eyes captured hers, full of questions.

"Who?" he said softly.

"Oh, come on, Eric!" she responded in disbelief. She almost laughed, but afterward was very glad that she hadn't.

"Do not toy with me, Sookie!" he sneered at her, his voice even softer. The quieter Eric got, the more trouble you were in. He let go of her leg, almost throwing it down. He grabbed her upper arms and marched her to a living room chair, looming over her with his arms folded and a dangerous frown on his face.

"This is ridiculous, Eric!" she exclaimed, moving to get up. She didn't like him hovering over her like a disapproving parent. He pushed her back down. "What I do is my own business!" she told him, shaking her head. "You don't own me!" Honestly, what did he think? How would she have had time to see another Vampire, get bitten, and have the bites nearly healed in the time since he had left her?

"You are mine, Sookie Stackhouse, and do not ever forget it!" He had put both hands on the arms of the chair and bent right down to get in her face. His fangs had come out. "I think you will want to revise that statement, will you not?"

She could see that he was visibly upset and she didn't want to hurt him. She sighed. "Will you just think about it for a minute, Eric?" she asked him. "When and where would I have met another Vampire and gotten to know him well enough that I would let him bite me there?"

"What about Compton?" he demanded.

"Oh, Eric, no!" She scrunched up her face. "Just, no. Ewww." She stuck out her tongue and made a sick face.

Eric was amused but didn't let her see that. "Why should I believe you? Just a few minutes ago you were running across the lawn to his house, to get away from me! How am I supposed to take that?"

"He knows, Eric," she said dryly. "He knows what you did to me. How you just walked away. Who do you think consoled me while you went back to playing Sheriff?"

She was instantly sorry that she had said that when he got even angrier. "Consoled you how? Like this?" He pointed to her legs. "Did we not just talk about honesty between us?" He walked back to the fireplace, put his head into his hands, and made a gesture Sookie couldn't see. Then he put both hands in his pockets and turned back around. "I do know a little something about how humans heal, Sookie," he continued. "I have been gone three weeks. Humans do not take three weeks to heal, especially from a Vampire bite. The Vampire has ways to make the bite heal faster, immediately if he likes. It does not take three weeks for a Vampire bite to heal." His expression and tone had turned from angry and accusing to tired and resigned. Maybe it was already too late for them, he thought.

Sookie refused to look at him. "We did just talk about honesty, Eric, and that's the second time you've doubted mine," she said quietly. "Is this what I have to look forward to with you?" Eric said nothing and she didn't look up at him. A moment of tense silence passed. "For your information," she said tightly, barely able to keep her tears from flowing, "you wanted to make them last. You bit deep and you hurt me, and you let them bleed. You said you didn't know what would happen if your memory came back. You wanted your marks on me for as long as possible to keep away other Vampires. The bruises only just went away."

His head snapped around to look at her, flinging something small and wet in her general direction. That sounded like something he'd do. He was very possessive! But that meant that if it actually was him that marked her there… his resignation turned to a stunned amazement. "It WAS I?" he asked her. In his wildest imagination, Eric would never have expected to see his own bite marks in a very intimate place on Sookie. As far as he knew, he had never gone there with her. Somehow he now felt the truth in her words.

He moved toward her and bent to scoop her up out of the chair but she put her hand out to stop him. "What, now that you believe me it makes everything OK?" she exclaimed. "Really, Eric? How many times do I have to let you doubt me? Don't you know me at all?" She put her head in her hand and then noticed something on her leg. A big drop of blood was slowly making its way down between her thighs. She looked up at him. "Eric?"

Yes, Eric was crying too. Eric. Was Crying. And he wasn't trying to hide it. Inside Sookie felt a huge swell of emotion so big that it almost overwhelmed her. Her heart melted. She put her hand on her chest and stared at him in disbelief. What was she feeling? This was just like that night… Sookie quickly put two and two together. Then she sighed, shook her head, stood up, and reached out to him. "Come here Eric," she crooned softly. She knew what it took for someone like Eric to cry in front of anyone, especially a woman AND a human. She was willing to forgive.

He didn't have to be told twice. This time she didn't protest as he picked her up and swung her around. Then he sat them together on the couch and took her face in his hands. "I am sorry Sookie!" he said fervently. "I promise you now – for the rest of eternity I will not doubt you again. I will not!"

She wasn't sure about the rest of eternity but she would take that for now. "OK Eric I believe you," she told him and leaned in close to lick the blood from his face. She had only ever been with Vampires and knew what this gesture would mean to him. His blood tasted sweet to her. Eric was nearly overwhelmed by her tenderness but he was still Eric. He tried to go in for a real kiss but she stopped him. "Can I finish telling you?"

He had forgotten about the story the moment he thought another's hands, and fangs, had been on Sookie. It had made him maddeningly, violently crazy with jealousy and he had started plotting the demise of whoever it was in his mind before they had cleared it up. "Yes I want to hear the rest."

"Well then, here goes. There wasn't anybody there but me to help you and I couldn't let you stay like that, so…"

"Wait a minute Sookie," he interrupted again, and he stared at her, wide-eyed with disbelief. "You were willing?" He had to ask again. "You gave me your blood, as injured as I was?" He was looking at her as if he had never seen her before. She nodded. "I was unrestrained, in pain? You trusted me not to tear you apart?"

"Yes, I did, Eric," she replied. "what's wrong?"

His face had become stormy, stern, and he jumped back to his feet. "You will never, ever, ever do that again! Am I clear?" When she didn't respond right away, he got right into her face again. "Am I clear?"

She smiled at him, knowing why he said it. "Yes, Eric. But if it's you, I won't keep that promise."

This made him angry and proud of her at the same time. "How will you ensure your safety?" He wanted her to think about the consequences of such an act.

"You made me hold the silver in my hand and said to shove it down your pants if you got out of control." She giggled a bit at that.

Eric was in awe. How had the Gods seen fit to bless him with this brave, beautiful woman after over a thousand years of existence? He sent up silent thanks. He was still upset with Sookie for her carelessness. "Sookie, a Vampire is a feral creature, a predator! You cannot know when one will turn on you!" He included himself in that statement, although he knew that he would do anything in his power to keep from hurting her.

"Without your memories you were a gentle giant, Eric," she told him softly. "Even timid sometimes."

He raised his eyebrows, unable to imagine any part of himself being timid.

"It's true Eric!" she insisted, and he felt the truth of her statement. "The point is, no way would you hurt me. I knew that deep down, just like I know now that even though you're all yellin' at me and stuff right now, you won't do anything to me that will really hurt me." He raised his eyebrows as she said that.

"You said so," he argued. "I was not myself. You could not know!" He was stubborn in his insistence.

"Isn't the fact that I'm standing next to you talking to you enough evidence for you?" she countered.

Eric had to admit, she was right. "Then what happened?" He demanded.

Sookie almost felt like he was interrogating her about being with another man even though it was him. "Well, you pulled me up on to your chest so you wouldn't have to sit up. Then you latched on to me pretty tight and took what you needed."

"Did I take too much?"

"Huh-uh, no," she reassured him, shaking her head.

"Then what?" For Eric most of the time feeding was tied to sex. He almost felt jealous of the other Eric holding Sookie like that, especially since she hadn't fought him. Of course, he wanted to know if sex was involved.

Sookie knew what he was getting at, but she was going to disappoint him. "After a few minutes your head fell back and your arms loosened. You said 'thank you' and then closed your eyes. Then I watched your skin stitch itself back together, but your neck was still red and raw."

"And then?" Eric wanted every single detail.

She was starting to get annoyed with Eric and this third-degree. "Why is this bugging you so much Eric? It's not like I was with another man. It was you, remember?"

"Sookie, do you not understand? That was the first time, ever, that you let me hold you in my arms without fighting to get away – and you were conscious at the same time!" he reminded her. "Only once before had you let me feed from you, again to heal. I am jealous of my own self!" He finally admitted it to her.

Her eyes softened. "Even if you don't remember, Eric, it was you." She took one of his hands in both of hers and squeezed gently. "Will you sit down for the rest of this?" She asked.

Eric was feeling a bit numb. "Yes, yes, of course."

She pulled him down next to her. "Well then, you slept all that night and the next day."

"What did you do while I slept?"

"That first night? I slept with you!" she told him. "I was not about to leave you alone like that so I locked up the top latch of the hidey-hole. When I came back you pulled me on to your chest again and that's where I stayed until the next morning." Then she looked down at her hands. "I had to put the chains back on you again because I was afraid Marnie would try to make you walk in the sun again. But before I did that I got some heavy blankets to cover you. I wasn't about to hurt you like that again."

Eric could only sit and listen, very stunned that she had slept with and cared for him that way. "Tell me more, please?" he asked.

Sookie looked at him like he'd grown a spike out the top of his head. Eric wasn't known to say "please." She smiled then. "The spell didn't come back and you slept all day. I took the chains off just before the sun went down. Then when you woke up you were kind of disoriented. I was sitting in the corner reading a book and then you were calling for me. You fumbled around and ripped my shirt, trying to get at me."

Eric jumped all over that. "See? This is why you do not trust an injured Vampire!" He felt triumphant until she continued.

"No, Eric, you don't understand," she admonished him. "You said you were cold. You were trying to get my skin next to yours. Vamps don't usually get cold, do they?"

Eric shook his head.

"I knew you were sick, so I got under the blankets with you and let you have my blood again. The more you drank, the more your focus came back. But by then you'd ripped all my clothes to shreds."

Eric thought that was something he'd like to do right now.

"When you were finished," she continued, unsure of whether she wanted to tell him this part, "you bit into your own hand and offered it to me."

Eric perked up at that, looking directly into her eyes. "I did what?" A Vampire did not offer blood lightly and the last time he remembered giving his blood to a human was Pam.

"You wanted to give me your blood and you wouldn't take 'no' for an answer!" she told him. Then she blushed. "I didn't want to, but you said 'we will be one.'" She looked up at him to see his reaction.

Eric's eyes were wide and his fangs were out. Sookie hoped he'd take this part well.

"Well, like I said, you wouldn't let me say 'no,' so I did and…" she blushed again, not wanting to continue. Eric nudged her impatiently. "Something weird happened. All of a sudden I could feel everything you were feeling. You were happy, scared, uhm, horny." She blushed even deeper.

Eric continued to stare at her with huge eyes. This had never occurred to him.

"And then we both had some kind of a dream, or a vision, I guess, since Vampires don't dream. We were outside, and there was a big bed. We got in it, and it started to snow." Then she looked at Eric for an explanation. "What happened, Eric? What was that?"

Eric swallowed a couple of times and cleared his throat, something Vampires don't usually do. They aren't prone to nervous habits. He had forced this account out of her, so he knew he had to answer her question. "We bonded, Sookie. We bonded." The second time he said it softly, more to himself than to her. That explained a lot, especially all the times when he'd thought of Sookie. He hadn't been thinking of her. He'd been _feeling_ her. If he had remembered bonding with her he'd have been back weeks ago. He'd never have left!

"What does that mean?" she wanted to know, a bit worried by his reaction.

"We are now bound by blood, and magic," he explained. "In the very simplest terms, it is like a marriage, but there is no possible divorce. And you are mine!" He felt like a beggar who'd just found out he'd won the lottery. Sookie really was his, now and forever!

She sighed with annoyance. "Eric, will you cut the macho 'you are mine' crap already? You've been telling me that ever since you bought my house. Just explain this bond thing, OK? Please?"

"Sookie, this is different!" He took both of her hands in his. "Our blood is now mixed inside of us. We will feel each other's emotions. The magic that binds us makes us feel happier when we are together."

"Why would you do that to me, Eric?" she insisted. "Without explaining it to me first?"

"You said it; I was not myself! I would never consciously do this to you without explaining it beforehand!"

"You mean like you tricked me into drinking your blood in Dallas?" she shot back at him.

"That was different, Sookie! I should not have done that, but that was starting to wear off. This cannot be undone!"

"So there's nothing I can do to get out of this bond thing with you?" she demanded.

That took him aback. "Well, no, but, do you really want to?" He knew from the bottom of his heart that he wanted this bond, and intended to strengthen it. She had no choice. How he would handle things would depend completely upon her attitude. He didn't tell her that if they didn't share blood again the bond would weaken over time.

Sookie knew that she loved Eric with all of her heart. She didn't want to be apart from him. But had she felt that way before amnesiac-Eric had taken the choice from her? She couldn't blame him. He might not have remembered at the time the full consequences of what would happen. He had been impulsive and reckless more than once during his "illness." Then again, they had been declaring their love before the bonding – ever since Bill had set Eric free instead of killing him. So, maybe he had gone about it a bit backwards, but had he done anything wrong?

She leaned into him, and he automatically put his arms around her. "This is a lot to take in, Eric. Can we just go to sleep now?"

He had been feeling the dawn for quite some time now and knew the sun was at least partially up outside. The shutters he had purchased for the windows and doors made the entire house light-tight. "This is a surprise for me too, you know," he said softly. "I agree that we should sleep before more talking."

She stood up. "Well, everything is nice and cozy down in your bedroom," she told him before starting to turn away.

He stopped her with a hand on her arm. "I am not sleeping down there, Sookie. Not unless you are coming with me." Did she really want to sleep alone, especially now that she knew they were bonded? When she hesitated, he became stern. "I have been all over this house, Sookie, while you slept. You know how sensitive a Vampire's sense of smell is." She nodded wearily. "I have more questions about the activities that went on all over this house. But for now, I will just tell you that I know I did not sleep alone downstairs. I slept in your bed with you, every night for some time. Would you now deny me what you freely gave to me before?"

She wanted to argue, to tell him that was a different Eric, and that she wasn't so sure of the Eric who now sat in front of her. But she honestly wanted him in bed beside her, she had to admit. She held out both hands to him. "You are so stubborn! Come on then," she beckoned.

With a smile Eric swept her up into his arms and flew them up the stairs. When he put her down, Sookie watched to see what he would do. He took her hand, walked her around to the far side of the bed, and settled her in. Then he walked back around, stripped down to a pair of royal blue silk boxer shorts, and climbed in next to her.

Sookie's heart stopped and her breath caught in her chest. Eric in silk boxer shorts was breathtakingly, heartbreakingly beautiful! The blue contrasted well with his pale skin and she knew what was underneath was just as soft and smooth as what he wore.

Eric pretended not to notice, but he was quite happy at her reaction. He'd purchased quite a few pairs because he knew how squeamish she was about sleeping in the nude, and how much she loved soft things. He had brought enough clothing with him to stay a while.

It made Sookie very happy to see that he had chosen the same side of the bed where he'd slept during his amnesia. Now that Eric knew why he was feeling all of these extra emotions, he asked her what she felt so pleased about.

"You remember which side of the bed to sleep on," she said, simply, blushing and looking down at her hands.

"I will always sleep closest to the door, in order to protect you," he told her gently.

Sookie lay down and automatically turned toward him, just as she'd gotten used to doing when he'd lived here with her before. Eric also turned toward her, but instead of settling into the pillows, he held himself above her. His arm was around her waist, his leg covered hers, and his fangs were out His eyes were wild, predatory, but also held a question. She knew what he wanted and knew she would comply. She had made a decision after that first night letting him feed from her. She would always let him feed, because she wanted him to have safe, clean blood. She hadn't known if or when he'd come back to her when she'd made that decision, but she stood by it now.

"Are you hungry, Eric?" she asked, reaching out to him. He nodded, having the good sense to look a bit embarrassed to be asking. She pulled him close to her, nodding her acquiescence. "But no sex tonight, Eric. I'm not ready for that yet." He lowered his eyebrows and growled playfully but nodded his agreement, disappointed but not surprised. A lot had been brought out into the open tonight. Even he was reeling after finding out about the blood bond.

Was it crazy to love being bitten by a Vampire? Sookie had often asked this of herself since that first time she'd allowed Eric to feed from her. The way he did it made her swoon.

Eric pulled her into his arms, making them both comfortable. Then he ran his face up and down her throat, taking in her scent, growling deep in his chest and giving her goosebumps, his beard stubble tickling her skin. When he was ready, he took the other side of her neck in a firm grasp and tightened his hold on her body, as though he thought she might try to flee. Then with a final growl he slipped his fangs into her skin, causing no pain while a bunch of other feelings went fluttering straight to her core. She relaxed in his embrace, trusting him completely as he made little slurping sounds taking her life's blood into him. When he was finished, he licked the tiny puncture wounds and cut his own tongue to heal them with his blood. Then he kissed her softly where he'd bitten her and whispered "thank-you" in her ear, easing her back down to the mattress.

"Before we retire," he whispered, "I will ask only one other thing of you." At her nod, he continued. "I wish for you to be here with me when I wake. Now that you have no other obligations, we will begin to keep nearly the same hours."

"But Eric, you know how I love the sun!" she exclaimed, sitting back up.

He pulled her into his arms, leaning back against the headboard. "I will never keep you from the sun, My Sookie," he said softly. "I love the sunlight on your skin, in your hair…" He rubbed his cheek into her hair. "That is why I said 'nearly' the same hours." He took out the same remote that he'd used earlier to close the shutters around the house. Another series of numbers, and a very solid door closed across the top of the stairs, and another closed across the door leading up to the third floor. On this floor were only the main bedroom and the bathroom.

"Why did you have those installed?" she asked suspiciously.

"For your safety, and mine," he explained but knew he owed her more information. "Sookie, I am the most powerful Vampire in the territory, even more so than our so-called King." He sneered when he mentioned Bill Compton. "There are those who would love nothing better than to kill me, or to take you to force something from me. Once our bond is made public, you will once again be in danger." He looked at her apologetically. "I know how you value your independence but some changes may have to be made. Short of that, these doors are here for your protection." He didn't say that the changes he wanted entailed her living with him. She would fight him but this was important. She needed protection. And he was being selfish. He wanted her in his home where he could teach her the kind of loving he favored.

"But Eric, you had all of this installed while I was missing! No way could you have predicted this!"

"You are quite right, Sookie. My initial reasoning for them was my own safety, and Pam's, in case we needed sanctuary. I knew you were alive somewhere, but I did not know if or when you would come back. I was truthful when I said I never gave up. But things have now changed, and I have you to protect. I would meet the sun if something were to happen to you because of your association with me, if I neglected to protect you!"

"Eric, that's just crazy talk!" she exclaimed. "I don't want to hear any more of that out of you! OK?"

"Agreed," he nodded. Then he decided he had to have something from her before she went to sleep. "On one condition."

"Oh yeah, what?" she challenged him.

"A kiss," he said simply. "Just one kiss. A real kiss," he clarified.

Sookie was suddenly brought back to another day when Eric had asked for a kiss. Just hours later Bill had come and taken Eric from her and had wanted to execute him. "Oh, Eric!" she cried softly, wrapping her arms around him and burying her head in his chest. She had almost lost him forever, before she'd ever had a chance to really know him. Then he had come back with the miraculous news that Bill had let him go. She reached up and pulled his face down to hers, kissing him like there was no tomorrow.

Eric was confused by her sudden mood change but was not going to turn down what she was offering. He kissed her back with the same urgent passion, careful to keep his eager fangs from cutting her. But when he would have deepened the kiss and gone further, she stopped him.

"I can't, Eric. Not tonight, not yet," she repeated to him, pulling back and gently touching her fingers to his lips. He bit lightly with his teeth, eyes glowing softly as evidence of his passion, letting her know that he accepted this, for now. She touched both fangs lightly with her fingertips, earning a shiver from him, Then she moved forward and kissed him again, lightly. "'Night baby," she whispered softly.

"Dream of me," he responded.

And she did.

Sookie woke slowly, reluctant to leave her dream. It was a dream in which Eric lay beside her and pledged to stay forever. Eventually she was forced back to reality, her eyes opened and she realized that she wasn't dreaming. There he was beautiful and boyish, almost innocent, in his sleep. He had somehow managed to wrap himself around her while she slept. She lay on her side, her head on his bicep, with that arm curled around her waist. His other arm had found its way under her nightgown and his hand rested in the small of her back. His leg was atop hers, and he had bent his knee in such a way that he'd pulled her leg between his. His head was bent toward her. She was literally wrapped in an Eric cocoon!

It didn't creep her out that Eric didn't move or breathe, or that his body temperature was lower than hers. The temperature made it comfortable to let him hold her this way and stay under the comforting weight of the bedcovers. She had never woken next to a human man so this was normal to her.

She wondered what time it was. She picked her head up to look over Eric's shoulder and saw that the clock had been turned off. Why had he done that? Her cell phone was downstairs in her purse. As she lay in his embrace she took the time to think about what had happened last night. Though she had tried to steel herself against him, he had managed to melt her heart and she had let him back into her life.

And what about this bond thing? She still couldn't wrap her head around it. They had taken each other's blood at almost the same time and had a vision together, and that made them bonded. Was Eric telling the truth? According to him they would be able to feel each other's feelings and she hadn't felt him lie. But then again, how would she know if she felt him lie? According to him it was like they were married. She wasn't sure how she felt about being married to Eric, especially when there had been no proposal, no engagement, no wedding…

Human needs finally forced her to wriggle out of Eric's tight hold, and it wasn't easy. She brushed the hair back from his eyes and kissed his still lips. She couldn't help but think, 'now what?'

She remembered Eric being here before and the thought made her blush. Eric had always gotten upset with her if she showered before he rose. He said he loved the smell of a woman, especially _this_ woman. "Besides," he'd said. "I am just going to make you dirty again!"

With Bill it had always been the missionary position, once when he rose and once before she retired. He would feed at both times, and sometimes wanted a "snack" mid-evening. Sookie had thought this was wonderful, until she slept with Eric. With Eric it was any time, anywhere, any way. He had done things to her that her country-girl imagination could have never thought of in a million years! Eric could go for hours and a few times she'd had to ask him to stop. But he wouldn't stop. He would ask what was wrong and move on to something different. The something different had always made her come in minutes if not seconds! Then, he would stop. He had made it clear that he was the boss in bed. Thinking about it now made her toes curl and her butterflies tickle her from the inside. If her shy, goofy, playful, timid Eric had been that way, how would this Eric be? Then she had to remind herself that she wasn't going to have sex with him yet. Yet. If they could work out their differences she would jump all over him, especially in those silk boxer shorts.

Heading back from the bathroom after brushing her teeth, she just had to get a peek at Eric in those boxers. She felt very wicked as she pulled back the covers. He would never know. He was truly dead to the world. She sat behind his knees and touched the silk as it molded itself over his perfect ass cheeks. She couldn't help sticking her fingers under the waistband. His skin was just as soft and smooth as she remembered it. He was still curled up on his side the way he had been wrapped around her so she couldn't play with the front side of the boxers. She lay her head down atop his waist and put her arms around him. "Oh Eric," she said softly, "what am I going to do with you?"

She didn't want to get caught fondling him so after just a few minutes she stood up, ran her hand from the waistband of those boxers to his neck and shoulders a few times, and kissed his shoulder. Then she covered him back up. Even though she wasn't a Vampire, somehow she could feel the night approaching. 'This must be coming from Eric!' she thought, amazed. 'This is what his body feels to tell him to wake up!" She found it fascinating but also a bit scary. But, with the night approaching, she knew there was something she had to do.

She went to the closet and there, on a hook, was a white silk robe. She took off her nightgown and put it on, leaving it open in front. She wore nothing else. Then she went in to brush her hair again. When she came out she went to the bed and sat next to Eric. She knew without a doubt that the sun was setting outside.

Finally he stirred. His eyes opened, wild and predatory, and immediately locked on her. His fangs clicked into place and, before she could think, he was on her. He maneuvered them so that they were on their knees, his between hers, forcing her legs apart, his arms like bands of steel holding her still. A low growl came out of his chest and he slowly moved his nose, just millimeters from her skin, up and down her throat, then across the back, where he seemed to notice the robe. He bared his teeth and grabbed it with his fangs, and ripped it in two down the back. He tore it from her body and used one half to tie her hands behind her. Then he resumed his inspection of her neck and throat while one hand moved to fondle her breast and the other went south.

"Eric," she said in a shaky voice. She was half scared, and half turned on.

As soon as the sound left her lips he clamped his hand over her mouth, hard, and roughly pulled her head to the side. At the same time his other hand found what it was looking for and he slipped a finger inside her, finding her moist but not fully wet. This all happened within less than five seconds.

Holding her that way, he struck, his fangs cutting deep, causing her to cry out a little. He tightened his grip, holding her completely immobile. Now that she knew about the blood bond she was more conscious of the fact that she was feeling what he felt, and she felt the darkness inside of him that controlled his actions. She tried not to succumb to the fear his dark madness instilled in her, knowing that it would be over in a few seconds. Something similar had happened the first few times amnesiac-Eric had woken up next to her. Once her blood allowed him to recognize her he would become himself.

As he tasted her familiar blood, his grip loosened. He slowly pulled his finger from out of inside of her but ran all of his fingers deliberately over her clit before gently embracing her around the waist. The other hand covering her mouth moved to her shoulder, where he began to caress her. Having finally satisfied his blood lust, he sealed and healed the wounds, then he kissed the spot where he'd bitten her. "Did I frighten you?" he asked contritely. "I should have warned you about the bloodlust."

"More than just bloodlust!" she corrected him, leaning her head back on his shoulder and moving her bound hands against him.

"Hmmmmmm," he breathed against her, moving both of his hands to encircle her arms. "I am not sure that I am ready to let you go yet." He bit her earlobe, then her shoulder, playfully, laughing and earning a giggle from her. "Tell me Sookie, are you mine?"

The room was instantly tense. "Eric.." she started to say but couldn't think of how to continue without hurting his feelings.

Eric became silent and methodically removed the torn garment from around her wrists. "I will of course give you time to think about this," he told her. He knew she thought she had hurt him. She had, but the hurt was secondary to his conviction that her answer _would_ change. He was determined and ready to use any means to keep her by his side. He hadn't felt quite this strongly about it before he had learned about their being bonded. His own alter-ego had taken the choice from both of them but he was going to stand by it. Sookie would see reason, he was sure. But her fate was already sealed whether she did or not.

"Can we talk about this Eric?" Her voice brought him from his musings. She had turned to face him and put her hands on his cheeks.

He leaned forward and they shared a long, slow kiss. Then he moved back onto the bed and leaned against the headboard, holding his arms out to her. She didn't hesitate to crawl into his embrace. They sat together like that for several minutes while she gathered her thoughts.

"Why is it so important to you?" she finally asked.

He was stunned that she didn't know. "I am Vampire, Sookie! The blood bond is the highest form of commitment we can make to a human!"

"But you didn't choose this, either!"

"I did choose this. It may not have been the Eric sitting here with you now, but it was my doing. The responsibility is mine."

"You see this as a responsibility? Eric, you don't have to. You're not obligated. It wasn't you!" she insisted.

"Sookie, look at me," he demanded, turning her around to face him. "The other Eric. Do you not see him when you look into my eyes?" He stared fervently into hers.

She softened. "Of course I do, Eric! Otherwise I wouldn't be wrapped up with you in the middle of my bed like this." She looked down and blushed. "But you didn't know what you were doing!"

"Tell me something," he said. At her nod, he continued. "Did I know that I was a Vampire?" Another nod. "Did I seem to know customs? For example, I bowed to our so-called king." She nodded again. "Did I ask you to be mine, or if you were mine?"

"More times than was polite!" she told him, chuckling.

He smiled back. "Then I knew exactly what I was doing when I bonded with you. My error was not explaining it beforehand. I do not understand why I did that." He stared off into space for a few seconds.

"I think I can help you with that," she said. At his curious nod she continued. "You weren't yourself, at all! You were impulsive for one thing. You ran out and drained my fairy cousin Claudine in about ten seconds one night! Then you disappeared and the next day I found you swimming in the lake, in the sun, naked!"

"I did what?" he laughed disbelievingly.

"It's true! If I hadn't gotten you back home I don't know what would've happened to you. You threatened to kill Alcide and he was just helping me look for you!"

"That doesn't sound too different than my usual self!" She poked him in the ribs. "OW!" he exclaimed even though she hadn't hurt him at all.

"Ow yourself!" she hollered back, sticking her finger in her mouth. "Are ya gonna let me tell you or what?"

Still smirking, he gestured for her to go on.

"You did crazy stuff like that, the whole time!" she explained to him. "It's not much of a stretch to imagine you doing what you did. Maybe you got sick of hearing 'no' from me and took matters into your own hands." She shrugged.

"I am still sick of hearing 'no' from you." He responded sincerely. "When will you start telling me 'yes'?"

"Eric!"

"And, we go back to the beginning of this conversation." He frowned. "Say yes, Sookie! Say yes!" His hands started to wander.

"No!" she cried out. "Eric! Stop!" she couldn't help but giggle as his hands began to squeeze and tickle her curves. Finally he pinned her down and got on top of her, holding her hands at the sides of her head and resting on his elbows. He was fully aroused and his fangs had come out to play. His eyes had gotten back that soft glow that she loved. It was hard to resist but she tried. "Eric, please!" she said softly.

"Why not, Sookie? I want you!" he tried to reason.

"This isn't just about sex, Eric! There's more at stake here. Just because I want you doesn't mean I have to have sex with you. If I had a nickel for every time….."

"What?" he interrupted his eyes growing big. "What did you say? When did you want me and not have sex with me? Tell me, Sookie! When did you want me?" He began to playfully nip with his fangs at her neck, then her shoulders, then her collarbone, and progressing lower.

She was screaming and laughing at the same time. "Stop it! ERIC! Stop it! Damn it! Eric! If I tell you will you stop?" Tears were streaming down her face, she was laughing so hard.

"Tell me, Sookie! Tell me now!" He stopped nipping but captured her lips in a passionate kiss. He didn't let go of her hands or remove himself from on top of her. "When?" This time his tone was serious. He really wanted to know.

"Well," she blushed, wishing she hadn't ever opened her big fat mouth. "Eric will you stop that!" He had her earlobe in his teeth and was licking along its edge. She tried to yank her head from him but he dug in with his fang and drew a tiny drop of blood, which he happily lapped up.

"Tell me," he whispered, and it was an order. She heard it in his tone.

"You're distracting me!" she pleaded with him. So he kissed her soundly on the lips, made a "lock and key" gesture over his lips, and sat there with an expectant look on his face. She rolled her eyes, blushed again, and decided she'd better tell him. "Remember when you saved me from those fanatics at the fellowship of the sun?" He nodded. "You leaned down and said 'trust me,' and I did, and I wanted to do more than trust you." She blushed darker red than she ever had before and refused to meet his eyes. He was genuinely shocked speechless, so she went on. "After Godric, well, you know, I wanted to come to you, but everything was wrong, and I was there with.."

"Compton," he finished for her. "Even after what I did to you?"

"Before and after," she told him, deciding just to come clean and be honest with him. "I wanted to be with you before that, and you just made it worse by what you did. But then I couldn't tell if it was really me or if it was your blood talking."

"What do you think now?" he asked.

"I think, no I know, that the feelings were there. Your blood only made them stronger. If I didn't have any interest in you at all, would your blood have been able to give me such strong dreams? And last for such a long time?" She looked up into his eyes, hoping for a truthful answer. He decided to give her one.

"The blood cannot create what is not already there." He explained. "I have told you this before. Only now do you believe me?"

"I didn't want to believe you before. I thought I loved Bill. If I felt anything for you I thought I was being unfaithful." She admitted.

"Perhaps you were being unfaithful to me the entire time," he said, only half jokingly.

"Huh?" she tilted her head to the side.

"He did not bond with you, ever, though he gave you his blood many times. Even as I tricked you, I bonded with you. The amount of blood was minimal but it was mutual."

"What are you talking about Eric?" she was confused.

"You had a small cut on your hand. I licked it clean and it bled for me as you sucked out the silver from my chest."

"You did what?" She pushed against him, trying to get up, but he held her there. "Eric, why didn't you tell me?"

"You were angry enough at what you knew I had done. I did not want to antagonize you more," he told her. "Godric was angry with me for what I had done. He demanded to know my purpose for it. My thoughts were centered on him, and his safety. I was only beginning to suspect Compton's deception, and I wanted you. I am afraid that, at that time, my motivation was purely selfish."

"Why are you telling me this at all?" she wanted to know.

"It appears this is a night for confession," he said. "You confessed how you wanted me when we went to Dallas. I thought you should know the truth."

"Is there more?"

"I wonder how things might have gone if I had enforced your new status as my bonded?" he asked her. "I could have taken you from him that very night."

"Eric…" she didn't want him to go on. "I think you know. I would have hated you. Never forgiven you."

"We do not know that," he said, "although I agree with you. It is very likely. I decided that you would come to me by a different road. And here you are!"

"Yes, again by another trick of yours, bonding yourself to me without my consent! How should I feel about this Eric?" She was upset now, nearly in tears.

"I did not tell you this to make you angry with me," he told her. "But I have demanded honesty from you. I must demand it from myself as well."

"Let me up, please, Eric!" she demanded. He turned over both of her hands and kissed them before releasing them and helping her to sit up. She turned away from him for a minute. He started to talk and she held her hand up. Finally she turned to face him. "This is what I think. I should be pissed. I should yell at you. I should leave, since my house now belongs to you." She reached out and took his hand. "But I won't do any of those things. I love you. I accept what you've done. And I expect you to stop tricking me. You don't have to do that any more. Understand? No. More. Tricks."

He wasn't sure what he expected, but complete acceptance wasn't it. He wondered again what had happened to her in the year she had been gone. It was hard for him to comprehend that, to her, it had only been a few hours. He reached out tentatively to touch her face. She covered his hand with her own and gave him a look of determination, a few tears finally sneaking through. He pulled her into his arms and she let him. His shoulder and chest were wet by her tears.

"Bill put me through a lot," she told him, haltingly. "I moved heaven and earth to get him back from Lorena and Russell, because I loved him. What did I get in return? He almost killed me for my blood. He kept lying to me." She pulled back and looked into his eyes, her own full of resolve. "I can't have that with you Eric. I just can't! I won't survive it. Promise me, Eric! Don't you lie to me. No more tricks. I'm here. I'm not going anywhere. Promise me!"

"Sookie, you have my pledge, my vow. I will not do to you what Bill did. I will protect you from him and those like him. I have no hidden agenda. I, too, am not going anywhere!"

"I feel the truth in you," she said, putting her hand over his unbeating heart. "It's a little scary but I like it. You overwhelm me sometimes." She kissed his chest next to her hand and laid her head there. "I'll give you what you want Eric," she told him.

"Do you mean?" The intensity of his gaze increased, as did the feeling in his heart for her. The possessive Vampire in him woke up to hear the rest of the conversation.

"I am yours, Eric. Yours."

The darkness in Eric laughed diabolically; she had no idea what she had just done. The light side of Eric smiled at her and held her close. "Mine," he said in amazement. "How long I have waited to hear you say that. I love you Sookie! You are mine!" Then he pulled back, holding on to her shoulders. His fangs had come back out. This was Eric's Vampire side joining the party. "Will you share blood with me? Strengthen the bond?"

She hesitated for a split second. She had just committed herself to Eric, completely. Did she want to make their bond stronger? This was important to Eric; this would be part of her life with him. She also knew about the other part of what she had agreed to. Eric was fierce and dominant. She knew that she had just given him free rein over her body. If he was anything like his amnesiac self, sometimes he would be rough, and sometimes he would hurt her, but it was a good hurt. She could only expect this Eric to double that, and she looked forward to it. For now he only wanted to share blood. "What will happen?" she asked him.

"I must be honest," he told her. "This will be our third time if you include what happened in Dallas. The bond will be sealed, completely unbreakable, and will never diminish over time. We truly will be as one, for eternity. Will you do this with me?" He looked at her with a mixture of hope and demand, his expression as fierce as his nature.

Sookie had already made up her mind. 'In for a penny, in for a pound,' as her Gran had said. If she was going to be with Eric, she would give him everything. She reached out and gently touched his fangs with her fingertips. He shivered in response, capturing her hand and holding it to his face. Then she nodded shyly. "I will, Eric, but, I… I don't know what to do," she told him softly.

His answering smile made her feel guilty for her little moment of insecurity. He took her other hand and pulled her with him as he moved back to lean against the headboard. He put her in his lap, facing away from him. He put one arm around her waist and stopped to explain. "I will open my vein. When I offer it to you, you must take it quickly because it will begin to heal right away. Do not be alarmed that I seem to be badly injuring myself. I will heal in minutes. At the same time, I will bite you. Are you ready?" She grabbed his hand for strength and took a few deep breaths, then she nodded. He kissed her behind her ear where he knew it tickled, just to lighten the moment. She giggled and moved her head to the side, lifting her shoulder to protect her vulnerable ticklish spot. As soon as he saw her relax, he bit into his wrist.

Sookie gasped when she saw what he had done to himself, but remembered what he had said. She remembered his blood tasting sweet to her even as she'd found the practice to be a bit strange. This time was no different. As soon as she got her first taste, she greedily licked and sucked at the wound. Eric moaned sensuously and immediately hardened at her back. He nudged her head to the side, tightened his grip around her waist, and struck, his fangs penetrating her skin like a hot knife to butter. She gave an answering moan as the mutual feeling of taking each other's blood filled their bodies with waves of pleasure. Eric moved against her from behind and she gyrated against him. The hand that was around her waist came up to fondle her breast. He caressed the nipple gently until it stood up for him, then he rolled it between his fingers, applying steady pressure until she cried out at the pleasure-pain. A low growl erupted from within his chest as he continued to drink.

The wound at Eric's wrist closed just as he had promised, and Sookie licked to clean the spot where the injury had been. At the same time, he pulled his fangs away from her skin and sealed the wound, leaving it to heal later. He grabbed her hips and pushed her onto her knees, rising up behind her and testing with his fingers to see if she was wet for him. She bucked against his hand and he held her around the waist to still her, biting into her shoulder not to take blood, but to hold her. She felt his fangs in her and it hurt; she cried out a little and reached around, grabbing his hips and pulling him closer to her. He forced his knee in between hers to spread her thighs, giving him better access to her center. He dipped his fingers in and out of her, using the moisture to put pressure on her sensitive clit, sliding his fingers up and down. "Eric!" she breathed, her head thrown back against his shoulder.

He grabbed both of her hands and pulled his fangs out, then pushed her forward until she was resting on her elbows. He pulled her hips back and she arched her back for him as he pushed her thighs apart. Without preamble, he pushed into her, burying himself to the hilt. She cried out and he slowly pulled himself almost all the way out, then thrust forward again, hard. He used his long reach to rest his hand on the back of her neck, holding her head down, resting on her arms. She moved against him, arching and opening herself completely to him, then using her inner muscles to squeeze as he pulled out. He growled with pleasure when she did that, and kept his rhythm slow for a few strokes. Then he decided that he was in charge, and the next time she squeezed him he spanked her, hard. She jumped and cried out, then squeezed him even harder, and he spanked her even harder.

His hand went underneath and between her legs, easily finding her clit and circling it with his fingers until she lost control and could no longer hold on to him from inside. Through the bond he felt her coming close, so he stopped his movements and began to thrust against her, hard and fast. Then he slowed and leaned down next to her ear. "Sookie," he growled, "you may not come until I say. Do you understand?" He punctuated his question with a hard thrust, and she answered by locking her hips and meeting him halfway. He spanked her ass again. "Answer me!" he ordered.

"Yes, Eric!" she cried breathlessly, moving against him and squeezing him some more. He spanked her one more time and pulled her hips back against him, his thrusts speeding up to Vampire speed. He could feel her in the bond.

"Not yet, My Lover!" he ordered her, reaching around to pinch a nipple. She met him thrust for thrust and then he knew he was going to come. The growl in his chest got louder, his thrusts wilder, and he reached around and put his hand on her stomach. She arched against him, moaning and saying his name under her breath. "Almost there, Lover!" he growled, his hand slowly making its way toward its destination.

Then he growled and cried out as it hit him, his thrusts becoming wild, his seed ready to shoot inside of her. He reached down and pinched her clit, then put pressure on it and began to circle with his finger. "Now!" he growled.

"Eric! Oh! Eric!" she cried out as it hit her too, and together they rode the waves of a strong climax. For Sookie it was deep, and intense, and uniquely Eric.

As the waves turned into small aftershocks, they slowed their movements, moving together, until, spent, they lay still. Eric moved to take his weight from her but she stopped him. "No, stay!" she breathed, loving the feel of him inside of her. After a few minutes of erotic silence, she finally spoke. "Wow! That was intense!"

But Eric wasn't finished. He gently pulled out of her, earning an impassioned "oooooooohhhhh" from Sookie. He moved her onto her back and pushed in again, this time making sweet, gentle love to her, full of kisses and sighs, and touches, until together they found their release.

Sookie got up to tend to her "human needs," and Eric propped up all the pillows on the bed. When she came back she had brushed her hair and her teeth, in addition to putting on deodorant. "You know that is not necessary for me," he said gently as he reached for her. He laid her back on the pillows, then turned on his side and used his hand to bring her to another intense climax. As the shocks died down for her, he lay back on the pillows himself and pulled her onto him. But instead of making love again, he pulled her against his chest to hold her as he was nestled warmly inside of her. Eric loved this intimacy, and Sookie told him that he had liked to do this when he had amnesia as well.

Sookie dozed for an hour and then Eric woke her by moving inside of her. He taught her how to ride him, to move different ways to bring herself different types of pleasure. As she moved and gyrated atop him, he squeezed and fondled her breasts, , then held her still so he could bite, his fangs going in on either side of her nipple. This was Sookie's undoing, and she couldn't help but come, and come again as his tongue laved across her nipple, pulling away her life's blood. Eric didn't take too much because he didn't want to tire her.

He left her in bed, squirming and moaning after his hands brought her to another climax.

When he came back, he had washed, and he held something in his hand. He held it up for her to see. It was a pair of leather cuffs. She blushed a deep red. "What are you doing with those?" she wanted to know.

"I brought them with me. When we go to my home I will show you my vast collection of toys. For now, just come here." He took her hand and moved her to the edge of the bed, where he secured her hands behind her back. She was curious He got a pillow and put it on the floor, then he moved her to the pillow, on her knees.

She was still blushing and he asked why. "I never, umm… I don't know how.." she sighed and looked pleadingly at him. She knew what he wanted her to do but she was completely inexperienced.

"You have never taken a man into your mouth?" He asked incredulously. She wouldn't look at him, her face still beet red. He pulled her up to sit next to him. "Not even when I….?" She shook her head. "I will not force this on you, Sookie." He put her back to him and started to remove the cuffs but she stopped him.

"No, Eric, I want to try. Will you teach me?" She leaned into him and shyly lowered her gaze. The dominant Vampire in him roared in triumph at this submissive behavior. If it was possible, he got even harder.

"You are sure?" He wanted to make sure. She nodded.

He helped her get back to her knees on the pillow and sat before her. "Take the head into your mouth – be careful with your teeth!" he said gently. "Roll your tongue around it. Feel the edges. Yessssssss! Oh yes, perfect, Sookie!" he hissed in pleasure as she obeyed him. "Put your tongue in the hole, taste the moisture that is there. Feel the place where everything connects." Sookie tenatively touched her tongue against the small drop of moisture pooling at his tip. She wondered what he would taste like. The first taste was salty and she touched him again, a little harder. He was both salty and sweet and she found herself enjoying his taste. He threw back his head and moaned, and she smiled. "OK now, pull it in. Suck on it a little as you come closer to my body. Do not try to take it all yet." There was something about Sookie's mouth that felt different, special, he decided. Maybe because they could feel each other. She was truly his and this excited him. "You can use your teeth a little, but not much." She gently scraped her teeth against the top of the head and then rolled it around in her mouth again. Eric had to grab the bedcovers to keep from forcing himself into her throat.

"Try moving in and out, see if you can go a little faster. Take as much as you can but do not choke yourself. Relax your throat muscles." He was inarticulate for a few moments as she experimented. Sookie liked doing this for Eric. He smelled wonderful, and his juices tasted like his blood, diluted. She could feel when something she did gave him extra pleasure and she tried to memorize what he enjoyed.

"I am going to hold your head and push in now. Breathe through your nose and relax your throat. Even if I hold myself there for a few seconds, I will not choke you. If you panic I will stop." She nodded her head, causing some delicious sensations for Eric, and he gently put his hand on the back of her head. He started to push in, but the first time she choked, and he pulled all the way out. She had forgotten to relax her throat and the first time he pushed in she had felt smothered. It was strange and scary sitting with her hands tied, giving Eric total control over her, but she trusted him. She leaned her head against his thigh until her breathing calmed, then she nodded at him. He put himself back in and pushed. This time she relaxed her throat muscles and leaned her head back to make more room for his cock. He held himself there for a few seconds until he felt her start to panic, and he pulled back out. "Sookie, I am at the limits of my control," he said tightly, his dick throbbing with pleasure and wanting release. He was pushing it gently in and out, still holding the back of her head. "I am going to come very soon. When I come, I want you to swallow it. All of it. Understand?" Another nod. "Ready?" Another nod.

Eric tried to be gentle, but her mouth was so sweet and hot that he couldn't help himself. He grabbed handfuls of her hair and pushed deep into her throat, over and over, and once she did try to pull back but he held her firmly. She moved her tongue to caress him as best she could, sucking with the back of her throat and learning that when she made a swallowing motion it excited him. She relaxed and let him do what he wanted. It wasn't long before he said "I'm coming, Sookie! I'm coming!" She could feel his cock pulsing against her tongue. She breathed in quickly and felt something hit the back of her throat. She swallowed automatically. It happened again, and once more, and then again. Finally he relaxed his grip on her head and moved slowly in and out. She could feel it twitching and swelling, and finally softening. He pulled it out gently and it made a "POP!" sound. Her jaw ached and she leaned against his thigh, watching his cock change shape as it softened.

She had never really looked at Eric's cock up close before. It was very thick; she was sure that Bill's had not been so thick. The head was large, but not overly large. It was a deep rose in color, and next to the paleness of his shaft it was beautiful. She leaned forward and rubbed her cheek against it affectionately, wanting to see how soft his skin was.

Eric lay on the bed, deep in an orgasmic high of Sookie's making, when he felt her touching him with her face. Her skin was soft, and her eyelashes tickled his sensitive member. He rolled onto his side and reached for her, bringing her up on to the bed next to him. "Thank you Sookie," he said, rolling her atop him and kissing her. Then he put his head back down and closed his eyes.

"Eric?" she inquired, worried. Eric was never tired. Vampires in general were not tired creatures who felt the need to lay back the way Eric was doing. And he certainly was NOT the average man who rolled over and went to sleep as soon as he came.

"Sookie, love," he said softly, a smile on his face, his eyes still closed. "I can still feel what you did to me with my entire body. I do not want the sensation to stop!" He caressed her arms, suddenly remembering that her wrists were locked in his cuffs. He rolled over so that she was on the bed, rolled her on to her stomach, and undid one cuff.

"Eric? What are you doing?"

He was hauling her up toward the headboard, where he looped the short chain around one of the rails and fastened the cuff back onto her wrist. "You are mine, Lover," he said wickedly. "It is my turn to have my way with you! Do you think you can be quiet for me?"

Sookie grinned at him. Amnesia-Eric had played this very game with her, except he hadn't had a pair of handcuffs to put on her. She thought she knew what he wanted, so she said, "Yes, Eric," and firmly closed her mouth.

"If you speak, I will punish you," he told her dangerously, and she noticed his fangs had come back out. "Now, close your eyes. I want you to feel."

Sookie was a bit tired from their marathon session and she thought of asking him if they could continue later. But the minute he touched her she changed her mind. He started at the top of her head, running his fingers through her hair and spreading it out around her head. She relaxed and smiled at him; she could feel his face just inches from hers even if she couldn't see him. He massaged her face next, starting at her forehead, the space between her brows, her temples, her cheekbones, her jaw and under her chin. His fingers came up to trace her lips. "Open," he said softly. She did and he pushed his long finger into her mouth, all the way in until she had to relax her throat to accommodate him. He added another finger and moved them in and out a few times, his other hand on her throat.

This panicked her for a split second but he felt her unease and stroked her throat instead of holding his hand there. Sookie knew that Eric wouldn't harm her and she concentrated on feeling her bond with him, finding no malicious intent anywhere below the surface. Eric, satisfied with her trust in him, moved on to massage her shoulders and her upper arms, feeling the tension in them from being restrained for so long. He used his considerable skill to massage the knots out of her arms, shoulders, and neck, then moved downward.

Eric's hands were like magic to Sookie. It was like a light flow of erotic current from his skin into hers everywhere he touched her. She had only one other lover to compare with but that other had never made her feel the way Eric did. Eric turned her on just by existing, by being in the same room. When he touched her it was pure bliss!

He covered her body with his own and began to lick, suck, and nip his way down her torso. Eric knew how to make a hickey, and he made several on the undersides of her breasts, earning giggles from Sookie. He tickled her ribs to torment her, try to get her to speak so he could punish her, but she played his game well. He got up next to her ear and growled playfully, putting his tongue in that one spot where he knew he would make her crazy. This time she was unable to protect her sensitive spot from him. As he tormented her with his tongue and his hands on her ribs and hipbones, another ticklish spot, she couldn't help but cry out. "Eric! Stop!"

His playful growl turned more menacing and he grabbed her earlobe with his teeth, biting harder than he normally would. "Lover, you are in big trouble now!" His voice had taken on a deeper tone even as he became more soft-spoken, a trademark of Eric's personality. He injected danger and a threatening tenor into his words as he started to debate himself. "How should I punish you?" He pretended to contemplate. "Sookie, Lover, I think you should ask me how I intend to punish you. Go ahead. Ask me!"

She said nothing, knowing through the feelings Eric projected through the bond that he was playing with her. She obstinately pursed her lips, keeping them tightly shut.

"That will not do, Lover," Eric admonished her. "I want you to ask me. Ask me how I will punish you. Do it now or I will…." And he began to tickle her unmercifully.

She could do nothing to escape his torment, so she cried out finally, "All right! All right! Stop! Please!" She was laughing so hard that tears were flowing down her face even though she kept her eyes tight shut as he had ordered her. "Eric!"

He stopped the tickling, but kept his fingers threateningly in place. "Ask me, Lover!"

Feeling very silly and unable to keep from grinning, she asked him. "Eric, how are you going to punish me?" This earned a kiss on the lips and a playful nip with his fangs on her vulnerable throat. Goosebumps covered her body and he enjoyed watching as they covered her chest all the way to her nipples.

He lightly drew his fingernails across her nipples and then produced a couple of clothes pins from the side nightstand. "I have not decided yet. Maybe I will torture your nipples." He took her left nipple in his mouth, sucked on it to make it stand up for him, and clamped it with the clothespin. She cried out at the pain, and he quickly repeated his action on the other side. Then, just as quickly, he removed them both, causing her to cry out again at the rush of sensation that came up. "Nope! I do not think so!" He kissed and licked both nipples to soothe them. Then he whispered in her ear, "I will be right back"

Sookie lay there, highly aroused, feeling both fear and anticipation of what he would do when he came back. He wasn't gone long. As soon as she felt his weight hit the bed he shocked her by inserting a very slippery finger in her ass. She tried to pull away from his invasion but he held her still and wiggled his finger. She squirmed as much as he would allow at the uncomfortable sensation of being penetrated there. "Maybe I will plug your tight little ass and spank you!" he threatened in her ear. She lay still, stiff and tense, afraid that he would make good on this threat. Nobody had touched her there before.

Just as quickly as the finger had gone up, he pulled it out. "No, I will have to think of a different punishment for you," he said in that threatening voice. "Ask me if I have any more ideas." As he said this, he began playing with her clitoris, very softly stimulating it with his finger. The sensations were delicious, and she began to move along with him. But he stopped. "Ask me, Lover."

She sighed, beginning to tire of his game. "Do you have any more ideas, Eric?"

He sensed the irritation in her tone and through the bond. "No, you will ask me in a civil manner. It is vitally important to you to know what I intend to do to you, is it not?" As he spoke, he added a second finger and started to arouse her once again. "Ask me, Lover."

She knew he would stop again if she didn't ask, and a particularly strong wave of pleasure hit her suddenly. "Ohhh!" she breathed. "Eric. Do you have any more ideas?" His fingers kept up their ministrations, and he added his tongue and fangs to the mix, sucking and biting her nipples in turn. He brought her right to the edge, and she was about to go over…"

"You know," he said, completely stopping his movements. "I do have an idea." Sookie let out a deep sigh and wanted to scream. He must have sensed this, because he covered her mouth with his own, kissing her deeply and keeping her right on that edge as his fingers softly touched her again. "I could deny you release," he whispered to her, kissing his way up her jawbone to her ear and back, then up the other side. His fingers would move a little, then stop. She thought she could fool him if she lay still but she couldn't. He had quickly become very adept at reading the signs she sent him through the bond, and he knew when she was about to lose control. He continued to kiss her, over and over, making her feel light-headed and almost drugged, as his fingers kept her right on the edge. "I could keep this up for hours, even days," he whispered.

But then, just as she was resigned to him tormenting her as he was threatening to do, he put pressure in just the right spot, sending her into an earth-shattering, screaming climax the likes of which she had never felt before. He held her still when she would have bucked and writhed and squirmed along with the waves as thy crashed over her body, and somehow that made it stronger. "Eric! Ohmigod Eric!" She wasn't sure if she was singing his praises or cussing him out but she couldn't help but to cry out his name.

"I changed my mind!" He said playfully as she lay there, spent and floating somewhere above the bed in her mind. She wanted to hit him, but she couldn't, so she just smiled and sighed contentedly. Then he reached up and undid the cuffs from both of her wrists, taking each one in turn and rubbing and kissing it to take away the red marks that had appeared.

"You are in so much trouble!" she whispered. "Wait until I get my strength back!" Eric knew it was an idle threat.

"You have been a very good girl, My Lover!" he told her. "You kept your eyes shut the entire time! Now, open them and look at me." This was an order, even if given gently.

She opened her eyes and found herself smiling into his. She thought his eyes had never looked so deeply, beautifully blue as they did now. He positioned himself between her legs and guided himself in, penetrating her gently, keeping his forehead touching hers so that they could see each other's eyes. No words were needed. Their eyes and the blood bond said everything that needed to be said.

Within minutes Sookie had another strong, deep release and Eric followed soon after. As he filled her with his seed, again, he could only think "Mine! You are finally mine! And I will never let you go!" His fangs ached for her, and he knew she wasn't used to going for hours like this. He would give her his blood, for strength. As she watched, he opened his own vein with his fingernail, making specific eye contact with her as he did so. "Drink, now!" he ordered, and pulled her head up to take his vein. At the same time he bit into the same spot he hadn't healed before. It hurt her a little, and she jumped, but as they shared blood with him buried deep inside of her, another orgasm overtook them and they went on a wild ride. To Eric, Sookie's hair blew back from her face as a strong, fragrant breeze carried them through the clouds, her face bathed in moonlight. To Sookie, Eric's strong arms protected her from a fierce storm. And then they both blacked out.

* * *

><p>All right, that's it! What did you think? Please review. Should I keep going? Write my own Season 5? Keep Eric and Sookie locked up together for a while longer? He does have more questions for her, and I have my own ideas about where to take other characters (even though I prefer to just isolate these two and write about them). I need your feedback! Thank you in advance!<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you all for your reviews, and the feedback that you've given me. I'm going to try to integrate some of the other characters, starting with this chapter. However, Eric and Sookie are not going to leave the house just yet. Please enjoy!

This chapter is unbeta'd. All mistakes are mine.

Disclaimer: True Blood is the property of HBO, Alan Ball, etc. Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries are the property of Charlaine Harris. I own nothing. No copyright infringement is intended.

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><p>Some time later, Sookie was the first to open her eyes. She was confused and disoriented. Her head felt fuzzy and something seemed to be pushing on her consciousness. She realized quickly that it must be the bond; somehow there had been a disconnect or she had shielded herself from it. Closing her eyes, she was able to sense the shield her mind had erected for her protection, and lower it. Visions flooded her head! A storm; Eric's protection; a bolt of lightning; darkness. These things should have frightened her but along with them flowed the now familiar comfort and companionship of Eric, whom she could now see was still unconscious.<p>

He laid atop her like a dead weight, unmoving, his member still inside her. She tried to roll to one side or the other to dislodge him, but felt that she was wrenching against his sensitive manhood and didn't want to hurt him. She pushed at him but the act was futile. "Eric?" she queried, tentatively. "Eric?" A little louder. "Eric! Eric! Eric, wake up, please!" her voice had gotten louder and more high-pitched.

Maybe it was the note of distress in her voice, or the bond telling him that something was wrong, but Eric finally stirred. His eyes opened and at first they darkened with bloodlust. His fangs dropped, and he growled. Sookie knew that she needed to soothe him somehow. The only way to break into his madness was with sex and/or blood. As he was still inside of her, she tightened her inner muscles and rotated her pelvis seductively. She could feel him harden but still sensed his bloodlust. He must have woken as disoriented as she had. She knew that she had to somehow give him her blood before he took matters into his own hands. She was so completely vulnerable to him right now that whatever he did might hurt her, or cause something worse that he would regret.

The growl intensified; his hands started to tighten on her body and he began to move inside her, his movements rough and forceful. She knew it was time to act, now. She reached out, urgently cupping her hands around the nape of his neck, raised her head, and kissed him, hard, deliberately cutting her lips and tongue with his fangs. It hurt but she knew he would heal her once he had come to his senses. At first he tried to pull away from her but then he tasted her blood. His hand flew to the back of her head and his other encircled her neck, holding her to him. He was pounding her, hard, and she was meeting him thrust for thrust, raising her hips against him. Gradually his menacing growl changed to a pleased one and he continued to kiss, lick, suck, and bite her lips and tongue. They moaned together as the sex became less about force and domination and more about pleasing each other. Soon he stopped biting and his licking became more gentle. She felt and tasted as he cut a gash in his own tongue to offer his own blood in return. Eric kept them both bleeding for several minutes, both of them soothed by the blood exchange. Sookie realized that she not only felt Eric being calmed and reassured, but some of that feeling was coming from her too. In one day had she gotten that addicted to his blood? Somehow she sensed that some of his instinct had been instilled in her as his bonded. It was scary, and intimate, and sensual all at the same time.

Then Eric's movements began to get more erratic. At the same time she knew she was coming close. The blood had excited them both and now they writhed together in a frenzy. He shoved into her hard, raising his head in a Viking cry that Sookie had never heard before. His seed shot into her and she went over the edge too, crying out his name as her body was engulfed in strong sensation. She felt it to the tips of her toes, while Eric's entire being exploded with passion. He was gentle now, rocking softly against her as the tide of feeling ebbed to a low pleasure buzz throughout both of their bodies. This was the bond telling them that they were as one. Eric used his own blood to heal Sookie's mouth where it had been cut and bitten, and his own wounds healed. He cleaned every bit of blood from her face, chin, and neck where it had dripped. Sookie was surprised that she felt the need to do the same for him, although there wasn't as much to clean since gravity did not go up.

"Sookie," Eric whispered at last, and she knew her Vampire was himself again. "What happened? Did I attack you?" He raised his head higher to look her over and was relieved that she looked unharmed. "Did I hurt you?" He threaded his fingers through her hair and she closed her eyes at the simple contentment this act gave her. She massaged his neck and scalp at the same time, unable to form words for what had just happened.

"I don't know," she finally admitted. "We passed out. I woke up and you weren't responding to me. I was scared!" She closed her eyes briefly to shut out the pain she felt.

"I am here now, Love," he calmed her with soft words and tone. "But I awoke with blood lust again." He wasn't asking. They both knew.

She nodded. "It's all right, Eric. You didn't hurt me." She wrapped her arms around his waist, stroking his back.

He made no move to pull out of her. They both needed the intimate contact now, to reassure them that all was well. It pained Eric to say the next words. "Perhaps we should not sleep together. I do not want to do something I would regret later."

She shook her head, for once more knowledgeable about something than he was. "No, it will get better," she told him.

"What do you mean?" He needed to be convinced.

"When you were cursed," she hated to say that word, "the same thing happened. When you woke up next to me, or even if you could smell me close, you would come after me the way you're doing now." She hoped her explanation would persuade him that it would be all right.

"And?"

"You were very analytical. It was cute!" she smiled, remembering. His brows came down over his eyes.

"I am always analytical!" he retorted.

"Not when you don't remember who you are!" she shot back at him, but then resumed her serious talk. "We figured out that once you smelled, tasted, felt me, and I was familiar, the blood lust went away. Like just now. As soon as you had my blood you calmed down."

"But that does not excuse the fact that I was going to attack you before I tasted you!" he insisted.

"You're not getting it, Eric!" she exclaimed. "What you need is something familiar. Something you recognize right away. Well, there was one piece of clothing of mine that you really loved. You wanted me to wear it all the time, when we were snuggling on the couch watching TV, or whatever. It had your scent on it, and mine. The white robe?"

"The one that I destroyed?" he asked.

"Yes. I would put that on every evening right before you rose. You would always grab me hard, but then you smelled the robe and it calmed you down enough that you were yourself. You still drank from me and wanted sex, but it wasn't like you were attacking me any more. I put it on this evening hoping you would recognize it, but it didn't work."

Eric was thoughtful. "Probably because I do not have the emotional connection to it that I did before." He was quiet for a moment, considering. "So all we have to do is find something that has both of our scents on it. Something I will identify with right away."

"Yes, exactly!" she told him. "And there's something else." With those words she blushed red as fire.

Eric was intrigued. "What is this 'something else' that makes you blush?" He waggled his eyebrows at her and his fangs made their appearance with a soft 'snick.' He knew this had to be good.

"Well.." she lowered her eyes and turned her head, still embarrassed but knowing she had to tell him.

"Sookie!" This time his voice held a note of warning. Now that she had brought it up he wasn't about to let her get away with not telling him.

"OK, OK!" and her blush crept from her face to the rest of her body. Inside of her, he was getting hard. She decided to just spit it out. "It has to be.. You have to.. It.. Well.. It can't cover me up!" she finally said.

"What?" He licked his fangs involuntarily. She was making him horny. He couldn't help but to push forward inside of her, just to relieve the tension his dick felt as it thickened.

She responded with a soft, "Oh!" Maybe that was all she needed to be able to speak freely. "You have to have full access to my body. Oh, I can't believe I'm saying this to you! We tried a few things and if you couldn't… get to me, you know… You ripped them to shreds."

His eyebrows went up high and he licked his fangs again, imagining. He wanted to teach her to dress for him in a certain way sometimes, as his submissive. There were rules he would impose. This went right along those lines and he knew that she would be more receptive to his desires because of this. "First," he whispered, leaning down close to her ear and running his tongue along the outer edge, "I am going to fuck you." At Vampire speed he reached around to where her hands were still stroking his back, grabbing her wrists and pinning them to the bed. "Then, I think I have just the thing!"

She smiled, and he recognized this smile from one of his fleeting visions. This was the smile meant only for him. This was the smile he had wanted from her from the day he met her. When she lowered her eyes, the beast inside him roared and he had to take her forcefully, give her a taste of his dominance.

"You. Are. Mine." He told her, punctuating each word with a deep thrust. "Say it. Now!" he demanded.

She loved this side of Eric, the side she had initially been afraid to encounter. His power over her was intoxicating. "I am yours, Eric!" she said with feeling.

He growled. "Open to me. Give yourself to me. You belong to me!"

She smiled again and opened her legs as wide as she could, arching her pelvis to give him the best angle to bury himself deep inside her. She relaxed every muscle in her core and breathed deeply, feeling the bond between them and flooding it with acceptance, openness to whatever he wanted or needed.

Eric was very pleased that she responded to him this way. "Oh, yesssss!" he hissed, thrusting deep and hitting her inner pleasure button over and over.

"Eric!" she cried over and over, keeping herself still and waiting to do his bidding.

"Hold on to me Sookie!" he ordered. "Show me your strength!"

She tightened her inner walls ever so slowly until she was holding him inside of her and he was buried deep. She wrapped her legs around his waist and rotated her hips, increasing the sensation for both of them.

"Ohhhh, yessss Sookie! Fuck me back! Yessss!" he moaned, surprised at her strength but loving the way it enhanced their lovemaking. Then he was coming, hard, his body tingling as his cock pulsed madly, flooding her with his seed. The moment she felt it, slick inside her, he rubbed across her sweet spot again, over and over and she imagined she was floating on a cloud with him while light flashed all around them. The waves of ecstasy poured over them until, again spent, they lay together, limbs entwined, staring with fascination into each other's eyes.

"I do not know what magic has brought you to me," Eric told her, "but I thank the Gods for you Sookie! You are everything to me!"

"I love you Eric," she responded. "Is it the bond that makes this so amazing for us?"

"I am at a loss," he said. "I do not know. I have never bonded to a human before. This experience is entirely new to me."

Suddenly the hallway was lit with golden light, and both turned their heads to see what was happening. It was not frightening to either of them; in fact they felt the presence in the bond with them.

"Godric?" Sookie was the first to recognize him. The diminutive, tattooed figure of Eric's fallen maker stood before them. Sookie pulled the sheet up to cover herself.

"Godric!" Eric made to stand before his maker, but Godric waved his hand. "There is no need, my child," he intoned gently.

"Eric, Godric I can feel you!" Sookie exclaimed in awe.

"Yes, you have bonded with Eric. You are my child as well," he smiled at her. "I will never forget your kindness to me as I prepared to die on the roof of that hotel. Eric, you have chosen well. She is worthy."

Eric was still astounded at the appearance of his maker in their bedroom. "Thank you, Godric," was all he could manage to say. "Will you give my Bonded the respect of turning away so that she may clothe herself?"

"Of course, my apologies," Godric bowed his head to Sookie. "I would not have come if this matter were not of grave importance."

As Godric turned away, Eric went right to Sookie's chest of drawers and pulled out one of her favorite nightgowns. Sookie watched with bewilderment, wondering how Eric knew exactly where to go. She did not press the matter, but she would later. He helped her to put the gown on over her head and then picked his boxers up out of the corner where he had flung them hours ago, putting them on and sitting down next to her. "She is decent now," he said, and Godric turned to face them.

Sookie sensed Eric's emotional state and tucked herself under his arm, putting her arms around his waist to show him her love and support. The strong, fierce Viking Vampire Sheriff looked down at the woman he loved, and knew that he needed her in this moment. He pulled her close.

"I questioned your motives in Dallas, Eric. Now I understand your need to form a connection with Sookie. I would not have wanted to let her go, either." He smiled at Sookie, who smiled back sincerely.

"She knows," Eric admitted. "I have told her what I did that day."

Godric smiled wisely. "As you should share all things with your Bonded. When will you pledge?"

Sookie looked questioningly at Eric. "Pledge?"

"We have only just reconnected, Godric," Eric explained. "I have not had time to ask her."

"Ask me what?" Sookie demanded.

Eric turned to her. "It is much the same as your human wedding ceremony," he explained. "In front of witnesses, you present me with a ceremonial knife. We mix our blood in a sacred vessel and drink, to acknowledge our eternal commitment."

"Oh," she responded. She truly had not thought about a marriage ceremony of any kind with Eric. "This is moving a little bit fast for me!" she admitted.

"Please pardon me for bringing up the subject out of turn, but I do have a reason," Godric said to them both. They both looked at him, both curious and apprehensive about what he might say next. "Eric, the one you imprisoned in a concrete tomb has emerged. He has not yet made his presence known but I fear you will be his first target."

"What?" Eric jumped up. "How? I buried him ten feet below the surface! It should have taken him a hundred years or more to get out!"

Sookie had no idea what they were talking about. "Is there something you need to tell me, Eric?" she asked, her eyes wide.

Eric closed his eyes. He had not told Sookie what he had done to try to make her safe from Russell Edgington, the King of Mississipi and whose consort Eric had killed to avenge his murdered family. Edgington had vowed to get revenge on Eric, and he had wanted Sookie's blood to try to resurrect Talbot, the one Eric had killed. He knew he'd better start explaining.

"Russell Edgington," he told her, and she gasped.

"I thought he was dead!" she cried out.

Eric hung his head and knelt before her. "I bound him in silver and took him to a construction site, where I buried him in concrete. I knew he would come after me again but I wanted to make you safe from him for your lifetime."

Sookie didn't know what to say, or do. "Godric? What do you know about this?"

"The fault is mine, my dear," Godric said solemnly. "I implored Eric not to kill him. I wanted Eric to turn him in to the Authority, but Eric had his mind made up.'

"I had no faith in the Authority to give him what he deserved!" Eric shouted at Godric, visibly upset. Sookie moved to take his hand but he shook her off. He began to pace. "Now Sookie is in danger again! I will protect her with my life! I will not allow him to harm her!"

"I fear that his lust for her blood is secondary to his need for revenge upon you. You must tread carefully, Eric!" Godric argued back. "I fear that he will try to take Sookie to get to you. You must not let this happen!"

"What do you suggest I do?" Eric asked somberly.

"You must make your relationship official!" Godric insisted. "Only if you are legally pledged will the Authority assist you if she is taken! You know the penalty for separating ones Bonded and Pledged from them is final death!."

Sookie stared back and forth between the two of them. "When were you planning on telling me any of this, Eric?"

He knelt before her again. "Truly, we have not had time to speak of this! Do you not agree with me?" he implored her. "I thought you were safe from him. There was no need to tell you immediately!"

Sookie thought about the way they had spent the last 24 hours. Had it only been one day? Eric was back in her life and once again she was in mortal danger. "But you were going to tell me. Right?"

He looked into her eyes pleadingly. "Yes!" He took her hand and held it over his heart. "Feel, Sookie. The bond will tell you."

She closed her eyes, concentrating on her hand touching Eric. This was one of those rare times when she wished she could read Vampire minds, or at least one Vampire's mind. She could feel him, and what she felt was love, determination, protectiveness, and honesty. She opened her eyes, looked at him for a moment, then held out her other hand to him. He fell forward on his knees into her arms and they held each other. "I believe you Eric. I love you. It's all right." She whispered, rubbing his back tenderly. She looked up at Godric pleadingly. If they had ever needed his wise counsel, this was the time.

Godric observed his child in the arms of this fragile human, and he did not belittle Eric for his need for reassurance. He was proud of Eric. He had thought that Eric had lost his humanity but it was obvious that this woman had brought it back out. He could feel what Eric felt, and Sookie's love encompassed all three of them. It was beautiful and had been lacking in Eric's life for too long. Her love was what would save Eric from himself. Godric could no longer touch Eric physically but he poured his own love into the bond. Astonished, Eric turned around.

"Godric?" he asked, confused.

"Yes Eric, that is my love you feel. You were unable to recognize it before. See what Sookie has helped you to achieve? You are as ruthless as you ever were, but now you have love to strengthen your cause and give you something more to fight for."

Eric sat back on the bed next to Sookie, possessively placing his arm around her. "She is mine. I will not let her go." Sookie nodded and leaned into him, knowing that he needed to be dominant here.

"You must pledge yourselves to each other before the Authority," Godric repeated. "I think that your Sookie may be a powerful ally against the fallen king."

"How so?" Eric demanded. He moved back into the center of the bed, pulling Sookie in front of him and wrapping his arms around her. He folded his long legs in front of her, effectively surrounding her completely. She bent her arms and held his hands with both of hers. His thumbs came up atop her hands, caressing lightly.

"This is not the time, but we may be able to harness her powers, give her some control over them. I have powers of my own. If you agree, Eric, we may be able to use the bond to channel my powers through her."

"I will not have her fighting in this war!" Eric decreed. "She stays behind the scenes, safe from his intrusion."

The last thing Sookie wanted to do was undermine Eric in any way, but she had to say something here. "Eric?" she inquired softly.

"Yes, Dear One," he responded.

"Godric may have a point," she suggested, keeping her tone even. "What if he comes after me and you are not with me?"

"That will not happen!" Eric stated emphatically. "From this moment, you go nowhere without me. This is not up for debate Sookie! Do not attempt to argue with me!"

She could feel his determination and strength of mind. She wanted to talk about this but would not do so in front of Godric. She would not undermine Eric's authority. As much as it infuriated her to be subject to his will, she had given herself to him of her own free will. She understood what being his meant. This was why she had fought against it for so long. She was used to being independent. But even she had to admit that her spirit of independence had gotten her into trouble more than once. Eric had more experience in, well, everything, than she did. It would do her some good to listen to him in this case. She leaned back and put her head on his shoulder. "Yes, Eric," she said softly.

Disbelieving, Eric bent his head to look at her. "Sookie, look at me," he ordered. He let go of her so that she could turn sideways to look him in the eye. "Do you mean this?" He had to know. "You are accepting my authority over you?" Sookie had always made a show of defying Eric. Lucky for her, she had never done it in a situation where he would have had to punish her publicly. It would have broken Eric's heart to have to whip her while his underlings watched, but he would have done it. Now she was his, and he could punish her for the smallest transgression. That was why he was making sure that she now understood what he was saying.

"Yes I am," she responded calmly.

"Sookie, I want to make sure that you understand what you are saying. You are giving me the right to punish you for disobedience, for even the smallest thing."

Sookie could feel the bond probing at her. Eric wasn't sure that she was sincere. She looked at Godric, and then at Eric, right in his eye. "Eric. In front of Godric, your maker, I am pledging my life and safety to you. I am yours. You have my body, my heart, and my free will. Put your hand on my heart just like you did mine a few minutes ago." Eric released his hold around her to rest one hand in the center of her chest. She put her own atop it. "Feel my sincerity, Eric."

He did the same thing she had. He closed his eyes and concentrated, feeling the bond. Sookie was being honest with him. She was pledging her life to him. He opened his eyes and smiled. "Thank you Sookie," he said softly, kissing her forehead. She smiled and leaned into him.

"I think a small blood exchange is appropriate," Godric said.

Eric agreed. "Sookie, do you agree to that?"

She nodded without hesitation. "OK."

Eric took her index finger and cut it with his fang, then squeezed it to get the blood flowing. He did the same thing with his own finger, cutting a much larger gash because he knew it would heal quickly.

"I pledge to you my body, my heart, my will, my honor, and all that I possess. I am yours, Eric." Sookie said.

"I accept," Eric said simply. Then he put her finger in his mouth and held his out to her. She took it and they felt each other's blood strengthening their bond. Eric healed her finger as his own healed in her mouth. She made sure that she licked his finger clean, and he did the same with hers.

"Godric, you are our witness," Sookie said. "I'm glad you're here." She smiled at him.

"Thank you, child," he responded, smiling back warmly. "I will take my leave so that you may talk about the future. I will see you both soon. Do not worry, Sookie. We will make you strong. Right, Eric?"

Eric nodded his agreement. "She will benefit from being able to control her powers. Thank you Godric!" he said solemnly.

"Goodbye, my children," Godric said, and he disappeared, leaving Eric and Sookie to stare at the place where he had just stood.

Then they looked at each other. "What do we do now Eric?" she asked.

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><p>This chapter was shorter, but what did you think? Has Sookie done something she will regret? Where is Russell Edgington and what is he going to do? Please review!<p>

Those familiar with my other story, "Yours For the Taking" (.net/s/6261191/1/), will remember my "Eric threats." Do you want me to bring them back here? By the way, I have not abandoned the other story. I've just got major writer's block and have more feeling for this one at the moment. Thank you to everyone who has followed that story.

Once again, please review! And thank you in advance.


	3. Chapter 3

First and foremost, I'd like to thank everyone for their reviews, both positive and negative. If you have something to say to me that you don't think I'll appreciate, please go ahead and review. I like my readers to tell me where they think I am going wrong and I try to respond to everybody who reviews. Thank you.

I've made the decision to bring in a book character who we will never see on True Blood, even though this is a True Blood story. Please don't be angry with me. The character has a use that will be revealed later.

True Blood is the property of Alan Ball, HBO, and others whose names I don't know. Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries are the property of Charlaine Harris. I own nothing. No copyright infringement is intended.

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><p>Inside, Eric was crowing with triumphant joy. When he had come here just one day ago he had been unsure of his future with Sookie. He had been ready to use force to gain her cooperation because he had no intention of taking 'no' for an answer. Not only had she agreed to be his, but she had surrendered her will to him. He still wasn't sure if she knew what she had done. He took her hands. "Sookie, I must ask you." He looked down, then back up, straight into her eyes. He couldn't keep his fangs from coming down, and they did with that soft 'snick' sound they always made. Sookie smiled lovingly at them. "Are you sure that you realize what has just happened?"<p>

"Eric, are you gonna start acting like the rest of the fools in this town thinking I'm slow or stupid?" she retorted. "Of course I know what just happened!"

"Indulge me then, please," he insisted. "Tell me, in your own words, what you just did."

She sighed, but then again she supposed it was hard for Eric to believe that she'd just given control of her life to him. She'd never given him anything but grief in the past. "Maybe you're the one being slow here," she snapped. "But all right. Godric came. He said we were in danger. Russell has escaped. You need to protect us. I gave you control over me. You now say what goes. My body is yours. My heart is yours. All of me is yours. I do what you say."

Eric was impressed. She had in fact understood the agreement they made and had done it of her own free will. "This makes me happier than I have ever been in my entire existence!" he said fervently. "But I must ask, why have you changed so drastically?"

"I haven't changed Eric," she said with surprise. "I still plan to give you my opinions, talk to you about everything. You're not a dictator, Eric. You're a reasonable man. I know you'll take my feelings into account but in the end all the decisions are yours. Why is this such a problem for you?"

"He put his arms around her and held her close. "Yes, you know I will always consider your opinions when the situation warrants. I value your mind. This is not a problem for me. I hope that it will not be a problem for you."

"Listen Eric, I'm not going to embarrass you in front of your Vampires. I know to keep my mouth shut and do what you say." She said in exasperation.

Eric was finally satisfied with her commitment to what she had promised. He hoped that she wouldn't want to change her mind later because he would not allow it. What they had done in front of Godric was as good as signing a contract. Exchanging blood over a pledge in front of a witness was binding. "We must do as Godric says," he told her. "We must go before the authority and pledge with the knife. That way no one can dispute my claim to you and they will prosecute if someone kidnaps or harms you in any way."

"How romantic," she said sarcastically. She had dreamed of her wedding since she was a little girl. Now she was going to stand before some faceless "Authority" and drink blood from a cup. But she had committed herself to a Vampire. This was what Vampires did.

Eric sensed the sadness she was feeling. "What is wrong?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she told him.

"Sookie," he got that warning tone in his voice again that said she'd better spill the beans or else. "Tell me." It was an order.

She sighed heavily and couldn't stop a tear from rolling down her cheek. "Really Eric, it's stupid. Can we just forget it?"

"If it makes you cry it is not stupid!" he insisted. "Do you want me to punish you?"

"For what?" she exclaimed indignantly.

"I ordered you to tell me and you have refused."

"Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"

"I will count to three. By the time I reach three, you had better be talking or I will make you regret it!" he commanded her. "One." She looked at him stubbornly. "Two." She said nothing. He got up and went to her closet and started hunting for anything he could use to bind her. Scarves, belts, stockings, etc. He had a simple punishment in mind, one she would hate. He hit pay dirt. She had a hanger with at least a dozen multi-colored scarves hanging from it. He pulled out the hanger and made a show of looking at each scarf, testing its length and its strength. When he was finished looking at all of them, he would say "Three."

Sookie realized that he was dead serious. There were only two scarves left on the hanger. He had them arranged in three piles but she couldn't tell what each pile meant. "All right! All right!" she cried out, her voice hoarse. "I'll tell you!" He pulled the last scarf off of the hanger and wrapped it around his hand, then, grabbing two of the three piles, he walked toward her. "It's just that…"

Eric stopped in the middle of the room, still holding the scarves. "Go on," he said in a gentle voice that belied the firm insistence he'd used a moment ago.

She sighed and hid her head in her hands, embarrassed. "I've dreamed of my wedding since I was a little girl," she told him. "And I've only just now realized that I'll never have it."

"Why won't you have it?" Eric asked, not understanding. He put the scarves back on the dresser where he'd piled them before and walked over to sit beside her, putting his arm around her.

"Because we're doing this pledging thing and that means marriage to you!" she said in a high pitched voice, trying hard but not succeeding at controlling her emotions. Eric could feel the roller-coaster going on inside of her.

He finally understood. "You want to be married in a human ceremony?" He tilted his head to the side. He had never even considered it.

She sat still, saying nothing. Her silence gave him all the information he needed.

Eric had seen many romantic movies no thanks to Pam, who loved them. He knew the human custom of proposal and suddenly realized that this was what Sookie needed. She couldn't feel truly wed to him without the customs that humans practiced around the marriage rite. He thought about it for a minute and hoped that what he was about to do was correct. He didn't want to look foolish. As Sookie sat there silently, refusing to look at him, Eric lifted himself off the bed and got down on one knee on the floor. He took her hand gently.

She looked up. "What on earth are you doing Eric?" she asked quietly. He couldn't be! Could he?

He kissed her hand and reached out to brush away the fresh tear that was rolling down her cheek. "Sookie," he said, trying to be smooth and debonair the way the actors portrayed it. "I love you. I have no ring to give you but I will remedy that. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife with a human ceremony?"

Her mouth hung open for a few seconds and she closed it. She opened it again to speak, but instead more tears came pouring out.

"Sookie?" he asked, concerned. "What is wrong? Did I not do it correctly?"

"Do you mean it Eric?" she asked him from behind her tears. "Do you really mean it?"

In answer he put her hand on his heart, and put his hand on hers. "Feel me, Sookie."

It only took her a second to read his sincerity. She threw her arms around him. "Oh Eric!" she cried, hugging him tightly like she never wanted to let go.

"Does that mean yes?" he wanted to know.

"Yes! Oh yes, it means yes! Yes, yes, yes, Eric! I love you so much!" She turned her face to him and he captured her mouth in a passionate kiss. The kiss went on and on and on, and when they broke apart, the smile on Sookie's face was all the reward Eric needed. He remembered when she had worn the ring Bill had given her, and how it had infuriated him so much that he had ridiculed Sookie cruelly.

"I am sorry, Love," he confessed.

"What about?" she asked him, her head on his shoulder.

"I made fun of you and your wish to have a wedding. Do you remember?"

It took her a few seconds to recall that night on the porch when Eric had in-fact made fun of her wish to marry Bill. That was right before the wolves had come for the first time. "I remember," she said quietly. "Why did you do that?"

"I was so angry that you were going to marry Bill! I could not stand it!" he admitted. "When you were bonded to me."

"But that's all over, Eric," she told him lovingly. "There is no more Bill. It's you and me now, and nobody else."

"I know! I know!" He held her tightly and went to lay her back on the bed.

"Um, Eric?" she said.

"Yes, Sookie?" he was kissing her neck, biting her ears the way he liked to do.

She put her hands on his chest and exerted a little pressure. "I'm…" She was embarrassed to say it.

"You are?" the tone of her voice got his attention. She sounded unhappy again.

"I'm.. Well.." She paused but she knew she had to tell him. "We've been in here having sex all night, and I love it, and I love you…."

"But?" he asked.

"I hurt, Eric," she finally said. "I'm sore everywhere, inside and out. I'm sorry Eric! We can still do it if you want!"

He had lost count of how many times they'd made love tonight, not to mention the time when they had blacked out and he'd remained inside and on top of her. Sookie was not yet used to this! It would take time for her to have the stamina that he had. He immediately felt remorse but he also had a point to make.

"You know that I can still take you, whether you hurt or not?" The decision to stop or not was his and he wanted her to understand that. "Your body is mine and I can enjoy it however I please." He was deliberately being calloused.

"Yes, Eric," was her only answer.

That was exactly what he wanted to hear, but he had a confession to make. "Sometimes I can be sadistic." He looked at her seriously, his fangs on full display.

To his surprise, she smiled. "I know. When you were cursed…"

"I still have many questions about what I smell in this house!" he interrupted her.

She blushed again. He knew that he would never tire of seeing her blush. Someday he would turn her, and he would miss her blushes after that. "Sometimes you would hurt me, like when you put those bite marks on my thigh. You enjoyed it. And…"

Eric was intrigued and more than a little aroused. "And?"

Her blush deepened. "So did I." she said quietly, looking at the ground.

Eric growled. "I must have you Sookie, now!" He reached across to the dresser and grabbed two scarves. He used them to tie her wrists to the headboard at Vampire speed. She didn't know what hit her! He ripped the nightgown down the front and was all of a sudden pounding into her for all he was worth.

She was sore inside, her muscles were sore, she was tired. But the way he was fucking her was so delicious! He hit her sweet spot every time he pushed in and it wasn't long before she climaxed, hard and deep. "Oh, Eric!" she cried out. She grabbed the scarves and pulled at them, testing his work. There was no way for her to escape the bindings. She felt helpless and vulnerable, and this so turned her on!

Eric grabbed her ankles and threw them over his shoulders, stretching her wide for his pleasure. This way he could go deeper inside. "Ohhhhh, Sookie!" he shouted, and out came the Viking cry. He came hard, growling and shouting out, pounding hard, and deep, easily bumping her cervix a few times. Then he released her legs and his thrusts became gentle. Sookie climaxed one more time, deep inside, and she shivered with pleasure, smiling at her fierce Vampire. He kissed her, hard, then pulled out of her. Moving swiftly downward, he bit into the thigh that was unmarked. He bit hard, and deep, causing her pain just like he had before. She knew he was marking her as his.

Eric loved her blood right after she climaxed. He felt the endorphins throughout her body and that added to his own. She said she enjoyed pain, and he would give it to her. He pushed his fangs in harder, knowing it would cause her to bruise. He pulled hard on the wound he was causing and in his excitement took more than he'd intended to. He sealed the bite to stop the bleeding and then crawled back up her body. He kissed her tenderly and she looked at him with adoration. He untied the ties from the headboard but left the scarves around her wrists. He didn't have anything else in mind but he wanted to keep her in a state of wondering, anticipation, waiting for him to tie her down again. He sat back against the headboard and pulled her into his arms.

"Sookie, I must heal you," he told her gently. She nodded, wincing a little as she made herself comfortable against his chest. "You must take a lot, Love," he said. She nodded again. He bit into his wrist and made a deep gash, one he knew would stay open for a longer time than usual. He pressed it to her mouth and moaned as she licked and sucked. At first she was tentative, weak, but as her strength returned her hands came up to hold his arm tightly as she drank. She made little sounds of pleasure as she did. The deep bite he'd just made into her thigh would heal, but he knew he could make another one, any time. Right now it wasn't about his need for dominance. If he didn't take care of her he had no right to dominate her.

Sookie knew she was addicted to Eric's blood. He had a sweet taste that was unique to him, but must somehow be mixed with her because he drank from her so much. Surrounded by his arms and legs, leaning against his chest, she was fully encapsulated in his scent, his essence, his aura. She couldn't get enough of him. When the gash finally closed she'd taken a lot from him. "Eric, are you all right?" she needed to know. "Did I take too much from you?"

His arms tightened around her. "No, you did not. I would not have allowed that. How do you feel now?" His voice was gentle as he rubbed his cheek in her hair.

"Better, thanks," she told him. But she was still tired and he sensed it.

"Why don't we go and bathe, and then I will put you to bed."

"Put me to bed?" she exclaimed. "What about you? Aren't you sleeping with me?"

"I do not know, Sookie," he told her truthfully. He was seriously considering going down to his chamber so he wouldn't attack her the next night.

"Let me set something straight, Eric," she said firmly, knowing he was worried about his bloodlust. "Not sleeping with me won't change anything. When you wake, if I'm in the house, you'll find me and do the same thing!"

"What do you mean?" he needed to know.

"I mean that you will smell me and you will come to wherever I am with your bloodlust. So you might as well stay here. And I don't want to be without you. Please don't leave me!" she pleaded with him.

"That reminds me!" he exclaimed. "Sookie, you will stay in this bed until I return!"

"I need to…." She looked toward the bathroom.

"Go then," he said, and when she got up, he followed her.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"You go nowhere without me," he stated simply.

"Eric, I'm not comfortable with you watching me pee!"

"Get over it!" he ordered her. "I will run a bath for us while you tend to yourself."

"Come on, Eric!" she pleaded.

"Are you going to defy me?" he asked, his eyebrows going upward.

She knew she was defeated. "I really don't understand this," she told him.

"I know," he told her mysteriously, but he didn't explain. In truth, he was testing her pledge. He would make a few outrageous demands of her and see how she reacted to them. This one was small, but they would get larger. She had begrudgingly agreed to his demand and he was satisfied. "How do you like your new bathroom?" He wanted to know.

He had remodeled it during the time she had been gone. There was limited space so he hadn't been able to be as extravagant as he'd wanted. The tub and shower had to be together, but he'd put in a Jacuzzi tub that would easily hold four people. It was surrounded by clear glass and he'd put in nine shower heads. One was a rain shower that came straight down from the ceiling, and each side had three stationary heads plus one on a hose. There was an assortment of attachments for each hose, but he would show those to her later. She was too tired for play.

"I forgot to thank you!" she told him excitedly, turning to throw her arms around him. "I love you so much Eric! I know you probably did this for you and Pam but it's so great! It's perfect!"

He hugged her back and then she started squirming. He laughed and let go of her, and she ran to the water closet in the back of the bathroom and started to close the door. "Sookie!" he warned her. At her look of curiosity, he shook his head. He would never allow her to close a door to him without his permission and she would begin learning that right now. Her shoulders slumped but she kept the door open and sat down, extremely embarrassed. She wouldn't look at him and she was blushing again. "There is no reason to be embarrassed, Sookie," he told her gently. "Nothing about your body sickens me. I want you to be as natural as possible." She still wouldn't look at him. He shook his head and turned to run the bath. "What temperature do you like the water?" Instead of a pair of knobs, there was a digital readout for the temperature.

"A hundred and one," she told him. He adjusted the temperature to 102 and started the water running. He knew that water up to 105 degrees was safe for a healthy human and would soothe aching muscles and work to heal inner trauma. He hadn't meant to hurt Sookie. He'd been so happy and excited at her acceptance of him that he wanted to touch her and be inside of her as much as possible. His body told him he still had a few hours before the sun came up. Right now he wanted to bring comfort to his future wife.

Wife! What a difference 24 hours had made in both of their lives. They had gone from two single, lonely, unhappy people to a loving couple. And she had agreed to pledge with the knife! The human ceremony was strange to him; he was doing it to make her happy, but the pledging to him was sacred. He had never met anyone before he'd wanted to bond to, let alone pledge. When you pledged, there was no divorce, ever. Even if you couldn't stand the other person and you separated, you were still pledged to them and could not ever pledge to another. Vampires tended to avoid pledging unless they had been together for a century or two and knew they would never part. Only after the other person died could you pledge to another. A lot of Vampire murders had been committed for that reason.

When the tub was nearly full, Sookie came behind him and wrapped her arms around him. She held the remnants of her nightgown in her hand. "Did you have to destroy this one?" she asked petulantly. "It was one of my favorites!"

"I will make it up to you," he promised, taking it out of her hand and putting it on the countertop. He turned, lifted her, and deposited her in the tub. "You will stay here until I return," he said firmly. She was leaning back against one of the pillows he'd stuck to the side and nodded contentedly. Eric smiled and went back to the bedroom for the remote control. He needed to go downstairs and get into the luggage he'd brought into the house before he had awakened Sookie. As he punched in the code and the doors blocking off both flights of stairs began to open, he went back into the bathroom. "Sookie, how far does the range of your telepathy extend?" he asked her.

"Here," she answered, "I can sense minds just past the edges of my property lines on all sides. Why do you ask?"

"I need you to scan the surrounding area. You can sense a Vampire, can you not?"

"Yeah, it's like there's a hole there, a void. It's weird!" she told him. She closed her eyes and lowered all of her shields while Eric waited. "There are a couple of guys over by Bill's property but they're familiar. His security." Then she turned her attention to the other side of the property, the part covered in woods. "Eric!" she cried in alarm. "There's a Vampire out there! You're not going outside are you?" She was nearly panicked.

"No, Sookie," he leaned against the sink. "Can you tell if you know this Vampire?"

"It's not familiar. I can't tell if it's a man or a woman. But it isn't Russell, if that's what you're asking me." She was relieved that it wasn't Russell.

Eric had no doubt that he could easily dispatch any Vampire lurking around Sookie's property but he decided not to alarm her. Later, after she went to sleep, he would sneak up on the intruder if he was still there. "Where is the Vampire now, Sookie?" he asked casually.

"He's out in the woods!" she told him. "Near the grandfather tree, just out beyond the shed." The grandfather tree was the thickest tree she had ever seen. When she was little, she had decided that this tree was older than all the trees around it. She had been learning in school how trees drop seeds that take root and grow if there is space and sunlight. She just knew that the trees had all come from seeds that this tree put down, or the ones after, so she named it the grandfather tree. She had shown the tree to Eric one night when he had mysteriously appeared on her doorstep, while Bill was gone. They'd walked out onto the property and Eric had been uncharacteristically nice that night. She'd enjoyed his company and had longed for it on nights afterward. "Don't you go out there Eric! Please?" She knew she couldn't order him not to go.

"I will not put myself in danger," he promised her sincerely. He was not afraid of whoever was out there. He would be in no danger.

Sookie was satisfied with his answer, convinced that he wouldn't go looking for trouble. Eric chuckled darkly to himself anticipating what he would do to the Vampire lurking around the property. But for now he busied himself going downstairs and bringing up the suitcases he had packed for an extended stay here. At Vampire speed he made quick work of hanging his shirts in the closet next to Sookie's things and adding his rainbow of silk boxer shorts to her underwear drawer. The sight of their intimate things sitting side by side in the same drawer moved him greatly. He had waited too long to be with her this way. He would never let her leave his side; never release her from the vow she had made tonight to him, and never release her from the knife pledge. Finally he removed a box from the bottom of his suitcase. It was square and white, obviously a garment of some kind lay inside. He hoped it would please her the way it pleased him.

"Eric?" she called from the bathroom. "Baby what's wrong?" He chuckled. He knew she called him "baby" as a term of endearment but he was no baby! He had shown her that over and over tonight and he would continue to do so.

He vamped back into the bathroom, climbing into the tub just as she was about to shampoo her hair. "No, let me," he insisted, taking the bottle from her. He poured some into his hand and began to lather up her scalp. At the same time, she got busy taking down the braid that was in his hair. As she grabbed the handheld shower jet, Eric turned on the water so he could rinse her hair as she wet his. She lathered his hair while he wrung the water out of hers and applied conditioner. By that time she was rinsing out his hair. He combed hers out and then she applied conditioner to his, and he turned around so she could comb his out as well. Sookie didn't use bar soap; she always used body wash, and had several bath poufs hanging in the shower. They both stood up, Eric handed one to her, he took the other, and they started soaping each others' bodies. They each turned around so the other could do their backs, and Sookie had to fight off a fit of shyness and embarrassment both to wash Eric's ass and to let him wash hers.

Pretty soon they were clean in most places and Eric put down his bath pouf, pouring some of the soap into his hands with a wicked glint in his eyes. Sookie immediately got the hint and stuck her hand out for some of the soap. "We have to make sure my dirty girl is clean all over," Eric whispered to her as he rubbed his hands together for lather, then gently nudged her thighs apart so he could soap her up good.

"Speak for yourself, my dirty Vampire," she shot back at him, squeezing his balls with a soapy hand causing him to growl threateningly at her and show her his fangs.

He reached around and swatted her ass twice with his soapy hands and then went back to the buidness of soaping her up. But Sookie was already working on making it up to him. The combination of the slippery soap and her soft hands was bliss for Eric, and he his head back and let out a breathy "aaaaaahhhhhhhh" as she carefully rolled each of his balls in a separate hand at the same time, now and then pushing a finger or two back along his "seam" to his tight hole, threatening but never pushing a finger in. As she pleasured him this way, he was busy working his thumbs nimbly through her folds, his fingers tracing every nook and cranny of her most private area but studiously avoiding the one spot she wanted him to touch most. He traced his fingers around and around the opening of her channel but never put them in because of the soap on his hands. Then one hand strayed behind her and he attacked her from both sides, massaging and exploring the area around her back entrance. Then he finally touched her clit, what she had been waiting for, and she fell against him, the pleasure was so strong. By this time she had worked his shaft up and down, over and over with her slick hands, her fingers tracing under and around the sensitive groove around the head and the place where the foreskin meets the opening. She'd washed and washed his head with her thumbs, making sure no spot went without attention. Eric was at the limit of his endurance. The time for massage and cleaning was over.

He picked her up off of her feet and then levitated them until he was sitting in the cooling water with her in his arms. He hit the drain and turned on all of the shower heads. He quickly rinsed the soap off of both of them and then turned her over onto her knees, glad that he'd remembered to put in the cushy bath mat as he'd started running the water. He was in no mood for romance any more and he thrust into her, all the way to the hilt in one shot. Sookie gasped and arched her back for him, giving him the best access to go as deep as he could. She held on to the ample ledge around the tub for dear life as he pounded her unmercifully, taking her hard and fast but not quite at Vampire speed. Water splashed everywhere, up and over the glass doors enclosing the tub, which were starting to steam up because of the hot water pouring from the shower heads. Sookie started to feel the inner stirrings of something delicious and so did Eric; he spanked her once and ordered "Not until I say, my darling!"

She was quite overcome with what he was doing to her but she managed to breathe out "Ye- yes E- Eric!"

He began to tease her nub with skillful fingers, bringing her right to the edge in no time and holding her there. The bond told each of them that the other was also coming close, and finally Eric began to come, hard. As the first burst of seed filled his Sookie he cried out "Oohhh! Sookie, now!" and he put pressure on her clit. That was all it took for her to join him, and they bucked and rolled their hips together in ecstasy, Eric breaking out in his Viking victory cry again, until they were both spent. Eric pulled out of her quickly and turned her to face him, planting a solid kiss on her lips before he went for her throat. She easily laid her head aside to give him what he needed, and after he'd grabbed on and held her still to his satisfaction, he slurped and growled happily as he took her blood for the ump-teenth time that night. She stood calmly in his unyielding embrace, resting her hands on his chest and playing with his nipples which enhanced the pleasure for him. He loved the taste of her blood after sex and would not deny himself, not when she was soft and willing as she was now. But he only took a little, conscious of how many times he had fed that night and not wanting to cause her to be anemic. He sealed the wounds and then cut his tongue to let his blood heal them. Then he grabbed the bottle of soap again, squeezed some onto his hands, quickly washed himself off and then put his arms around her waist, kissing her deeply while his hands went to work gently cleaning her again.

She gasped and he pulled away from the kiss to look inquiringly at her. "Sensitive," she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him back to her mouth to finish the kiss. Eric growled again, loving how she responded to his touch, knowing without a doubt that he was the only one who had affected her this way. The bond told him that by the feelings coming from her. He used the handheld to give their hair and their genitals a final rinse, then opened the door and reached across for the two fluffy towels he had left on the countertop. They stepped out onto the bath rug and dried each other's bodies, kissing and making out as they did.

"Sookie!" Eric finally growled. "If we do much more of this I will end up taking you again!" They both looked down at his very stiff cock and Sookie playfully tried to grab it. He grabbed her hands and took both wrists in one hand, holding them above her head while he walked her backward toward the bedroom, playfully pinching her nipples as she shrieked at him to stop. He stared at her hungrily, his fangs fully on display, but he knew he had to somehow get her to sleep so he could go out and assault the Vampire lurking on her property before it was too close to sunrise. But before that, he had a surprise for her. There, on the bed where he'd left it, was the package.

"Eric? What's this?" she asked, picking it up and staring at him with surprise.

"Something I brought for you," he replied, smiling back and pulling her to sit on the bed with him. "Go on, open it!" he encouraged.

She threw her arms around him and kissed him with a huge smile. "Oh, thank you, Eric!"

"Perhaps you should wait to see if you like it before thanking me?" he suggested, hugging her close and putting the box back in her hands.

Smiling in delight and moving her gaze back and forth between the package and Eric, she pulled the gauzy bow away from the box, which allowed the ribbon to fall away so that she could open the lid. Whatever was inside was covered in tissue paper, which she began to carefully pull away.

"Sookie, I am getting grey hair here!" Eric exclaimed teasingly.

She swatted at him with her hands. "Smart-ass!" she called him lovingly. Finally it was free of the paper, and she held it up to examine it. It was a piece of lingerie, but not the kind that she would have expected Eric to give her. It was a golden ivory colored silk, and it had a halter top that fastened at the neck with a snap. It had an empire waist made of ruched fabric encrusted with hundreds if not thousands of tiny beads which changed from a golden ivory to a fiery orange-red according to the way the light hit them. The beads were also sewn along the edges of the top, which was also edged with beautiful ivory lace. The bottom portion of it was made of alternating panels of the lace and the silk, while the bottom was edged with the beads and the lace. It would come to mid-hip. Also inside the box was a pair of beautiful thong panties made of the same lace, silk, and beads, and to complete the ensemble there was a robe made of the same silk, edged with the same lace and beadwork, with the beads forming spirals and stars along the robe's lapels, the scalloped edges of the three-quarter bell sleeves, and the lace-edged bottom, which would fall just a few inches longer than the top. The beads were not hard and rough, but instead were made of a soft, shiny material that Sookie could not identify. They weren't sequins either. She decided not to ask Eric what the beads were made of because she didn't want to seem picky about his gift. "This is beautiful Eric!" she said in awe. "I love it, and I love you! Thank you!" She turned to him and hugged him tightly, not wanting to let go.

He held her like that for a few moments but then curiosity got the best of him. "Sookie, Lover, since you are already undressed, may I see you in it?"

She blushed again and cast her eyes down. "Of course, Eric," she said with a soft smile. It was that same smile that he now knew was reserved only for him. He was proud to own that smile, being the possessive Vampire that he was. Suddenly shy, she slipped the top over her head and pulled up the thong panties, a bit surprised that they fit her perfectly. How did this Eric know her size? She bit her lip and tilted her head curiously, looking at him.

"What is that look for?" he wanted to know, smiling back at her.

"How did you know my size?" she asked him.

It was his turn to look down for a second. "I cheated," he finally admitted. "I sneaked in here and took some of your things while you were gone. I had a tailor look at them and take measurements. I had that custom-made for you." He smiled again, hoping this news wouldn't anger her.

"While I was…?"

"During the year that you were missing," he explained. "I told you the truth Sookie; I never gave up on you. I had this made before you returned."

"Oh," she said quietly, still for a moment. Then she took his hand in both of hers. "I don't know what to say, Eric. You cared about me even then didn't you?"

"Sookie, you have represented the sun to me for a very long time," he told her somberly, taking both of her hands and kissing them. "The beads remind me of the sunset. There are other supernaturals in this world that you have not met yet, Love, and the beads came from one of them. But come on, I want to see you!" he said suddenly, breaking the quiet mood. He set her on her feet and made a twirling motion with his finger. She turned red but she spun around for him, and around and around again. The "skirt" part of the negligee flared out and away from her body, exposing her belly and those delicious panties. Eric had to tear his eyes away to keep from tackling her to the bed.

"You," she came back to him and straddled his hips, "are the most wonderful, perfect, amazing, Vampire-man alive! How did I ever turn you away? What was I, crazy?" she kissed him, rubbing her silk-enclosed crotch against his nakedness. He was hard again immediately and he tried to will it to go down.

"I wondered that myself," he laughed. "How did you ever dismiss my perfection?" He raised his hand to his hair and began patting it into place, his nose in the air.

She punched his shoulder, but then rubbed it and kissed him again. "Arrogant, conceited…" she couldn't get any more words out because he was kissing her again. He flipped them around and they landed on the bed, him on top pinning her hands at the sides of her head.

"Woman, you will be the death of me!" he said, then he deepened the kiss. As if on cue, her stomach rumbled. He raised his head.

"Ignore it Eric!" she said, trying to pull him back down to kiss her.

"No, I will not!" he said, suddenly ashamed. He got up and strode to where he had put his clothes in the dresser next to hers, pulled out and put on a pair of blue workout pants with a lighter blue stripe. "I have been selfishly keeping you up here, having sex and taking your blood, and you have had nothing to eat! I know better than this! Why did you not say something?"

"I wasn't thinking about it," she said, shrugging.

"Sookie do not shrug your shoulders at me!" he exclaimed, upset. "This is serious! We have to be mindful of your health if I am to feed from you every night!"

"You'll feed from me, every night?" she repeated. "Nobody else, just me?" That made her happier than she wanted to admit. She had been hoping, but Eric wasn't the kind of man from whom you demanded monogamy.

"Where is this coming from?" he demanded. "Of course I will feed from you, and only you. You may not feel it without having had your human ceremony, but you are my wife! I hold that sacred. I will not be unfaithful to you!"

"Do you really mean that Eric?" a single tear escaped her eye.

"Does this make you sad?" he asked, walking over and taking her in his arms, brushing the tear from her cheek and tasting it.

"It makes me VERY happy, Eric!" she said shyly, wrapping her arms around his waist and laying her head on his chest. "I didn't expect it, is all. You have been with so many…" she didn't know how to finish her sentence.

"And you thought that I would continue to see other women when I have you?" he asked incredulously. "Sookie, what kind of man do you believe I am?"

"A powerful, attractive man who can have any woman he wants," she admitted, unwilling to look him in the eye.

He used his finger under her chin to pull her head up so he could see her eyes. "I am with the woman I want," he said simply. "There is no other that could ever compare to you. When I met you I was lost. They all blended into one thing after that, and that one thing was 'not Sookie.' But, how many women do you think I…?"

"I don't know, Eric," she replied, embarrassed. "Hundreds, thousands? You could have three or four a night if you wanted!"

Eric threw back his head and out came a hearty laugh. "Three or four a night?"

"Is it more than that?" Her eyes grew wider, and she suddenly decided she didn't want to know. "It's all right, Eric. You don't have to tell me. It's none of my business anyway." She started to pull away from him but he held her close.

"Believe it or not Sookie," he told her, still smiling and shaking his head, "I am not this man, this Vampire, you believe me to be. I do admit that I had no shortage of women willing to let me have my way with them, but there is more to life than sex! Sookie, I have a business to run. Countless hours have I sat on that dreadful 'throne' at the behest of Pam, who thinks it is good for business. Do you have any idea how boring that is? Mindless sex with drunken, sweaty women, beautiful or not, lost its appeal for me centuries ago."

Sookie knew he was being truthful. "Really? What do you do with your time?"

"I probably enjoy the same things you do," he told her. "I see that you keep a lot of books around. I, too, enjoy reading, although I think I am much pickier than you are." He picked up her latest read from the nightstand to make a point. On the cover was a tall, muscular blond man who looked embarrassingly like Eric, holding a woman whose dress appeared about to fall off her top half. She snatched the book away from him and threw it down on the bed, blushing. "You forget where I come from, Sookie," he went on. "Technology never ceases to amaze me. The internet is fascinating to me! And, I am also a business owner. There are endless mundane chores to do when you run your own business. I like to keep things very close to me, especially after that incident with Longshadow! I have taken many more things upon myself to do as a result. I am hoping that I can bring you in to take some of them from me so that we will have more time to play!" He waggled his eyebrows at her. "I also have duties as Sheriff. I must collect tribute from my underlings and oversee justice among them. I have to account for my earnings not only to the American I.R.S. but also our 'noble' king and the Authority. I am expected to hold court a few times a month to deal with grievances. If they send a V.I.P. into my area I am expected to keep him entertained with whatever his favorite pastime may be. I have a great deal of money; I think you know that. I am constantly trying to find the best ways to invest it and keep it increasing. After all, if you never expect to die, you must always make sure that you will have an income and savings to fall back on."

Sookie was suddenly seeing Eric in a whole new light. She had never considered Eric to be stupid, but the thought of him reading a book or sitting down to write his own payroll checks was not something she'd ever pictured. She thought he paid people to do everything for him so that he would have time to feed and fuck. "Eric, I think I owe you an apology," she said, stroking his face. "Of course I will help you with whatever I can! But I'm just a waitress and…"

She jumped ten feet in the air when Eric's fist hit the wall, knocking pictures down and toppling a bedside lamp. "No!" he bellowed. "Sookie, you are no longer a waitress, and you were never 'just' anything. Every time I have heard you put yourself down like that I have wanted to stop you. Only now do I have the right. Do not ever demean yourself, especially not in front of me. You are beautiful, talented, smart, and accomplished! It is this shitty small town you live in that has you feeling like something is wrong with you. I WILL put a stop to it!"

Eric's facial expression was so grave that she was almost afraid of what he would do next. And, right on cue, her stomach grumbled again.

"Once again I am being selfish, keeping you from eating," he said. He had never reclosed the interior security doors and so he picked her up in his arms and whooshed them down the stairs to the kitchen. "I do not care what you make, but fix yourself something." That was an order. Sookie rolled her eyes and smiled at him, then went to the refrigerator to get out some leftover fried chicken from the day before Eric had shown up. She fixed a plate with the chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and stuck it in the microwave. Then she poured herself a tall glass of milk and started heating water for tea.

Eric was reminded again that he had so much more now than he had before. He knew that if he spoke of it to anyone they would quickly become tired of listening, but he couldn't stop thinking about it. Twenty-four hours ago he had been sitting in this very kitchen with Sookie, and again she had been making tea. But where she had been angrily throwing things around and fighting with him before, today she was wearing the beautiful lingerie he had had made for her and was humming as she made her tea. He zipped out into the living room and back to get his cell phone from the charger where he'd left it. He pulled it out and dialed, while Sookie turned and watched, a silent question in her eyes. He held up one finger as the party on the other end answered.

"Dr. Ludwig," Eric said in his most businesslike voice. "Yes, this is Eric Northman." Sookie could not hear the other end of the conversation. "Yes, I do have a good reason for calling you at this hour. And we do have a contract, do we not?" He winked and rolled his eyes at Sookie, who smiled. She had met the not-very-nice Dr. Ludwig once when she had almost been killed by a maenad trying to deliver a message to Eric. The doctor wasn't polite but was said to be able to heal anything. Sookie wondered why Eric was calling her. After listening to the good Doctor rant on the other end of the line for a moment, Eric got to the point. "I do have good news, yes," he said. "I am newly bonded. Yes, she is human. You have met her. Sookie Stackhouse. Yes, that is she." He hit the 'mute' button and said to Sookie, "The Doctor sends her regards." And Dr. Ludwig had. Apparently, Sookie had made quite an impression on her. Eric was glad to know that. "No, she is not trying to run away from me," Eric laughed as the Doctor continued to question him. "I simply need to know how best to keep her healthy. Yes, I feed from her multiple times daily. Yes, it goes both ways. Yes, I have a pen." He made writing motions at Sookie, who quickly got him the pad and paper she still kept next to the phone where her Gran had at and gossiped for hours while she was alive. Sookie rarely, if ever, used that phone, now that she had her cell phone. Eric wrote down a list of things in the most beautiful script Sookie had ever seen. This made her realize that she had never seen Eric's handwriting before. It was unique, and flowing. One more thing to love about him, she supposed. But when she tried to actually see what he was writing, he covered up the list with his big hand. Sookie waited until he got off the phone before she lit into him.

"Why won't you let me see what you wrote, Eric?" she demanded. "I mean it is about me, isn't it?" She noticed that he had turned the pad over so the bottom faced up and she tried to pull it out from under his hands. Of course she couldn't get it from him. Frustrated, she sat back and folded her arms with a huff. "Jerk!"

"I will share this with you, Sookie, in good time," he said, reaching for her. She nimbly scooted out of his way and headed for the microwave to retrieve what she had warmed up. But Eric had other ideas. Faster than lightning, he had jumped up, pursued her across the room, and now stood in her way, glaring angrily down at her. She tried to sidestep him but he hauled her up against him, his hands restraining her arms at her sides.

"What are you doing? Let me go!" she shrieked, struggling hard against his hold. She was no match for his strength.

"I am teaching you about our new relationship, and how you will interact with me in it!" he said firmly.

"Excuse me?" she snapped back at him. "Interact with you? Oh, this ought to be good!" She set her mouth defiantly, glaring at him.

"We have not gone over this before so I will excuse your behavior this time," he said. "But _only_ this time." He paused to gauge her reaction, and her expression didn't change except for she narrowed her eyes at him. He sighed. "I expect you to listen as I only plan to say this once. You will not walk away from me like that under any circumstances, unless we are playing which we certainly are not now." She opened her mouth to protest but he silenced her with a look. "And when I reach for you, you will not, I repeat _will not_ flee from me the way you just did. It would do you well to heed and understand this now."

"Well look at you, Mr. High-And-Mighty!" she scoffed at him. "Do not ever flee from me!" She imitated his voice. "Where do you get off talking to me like that?"

He let out a growl of frustration, backed her up, and pushed her into the nearest chair. In an instant he had pulled one up before her as close as he could, trapping her knees between the two chairs and firmly planting his feet on the floor on both sides of hers. He placed her hands palms-down on her thighs and covered them with his own, and leaned forward. She wasn't going anywhere until he let her. "Let me ask you," he demanded. "Did you not agree to be mine, by blood pledge before my maker?" She started to speak but he held up a finger to silence her. "Just nod, please." She stared daggers at him for a few seconds before nodding. "One thing you will learn about being my bonded, and pledged, is that I will expect you to obey me and show me respect at all times. Now you started this by calling me a jerk!"

"No," she disagreed. "You started it by refusing to let me see what you wrote about me!"

"And how do you know that when I reached for you it was not to show you?" he wanted to know.

She started to feel the inner stirrings of chagrin but decided to fight against it. "I didn't," she retorted angrily, looking away.

"That is not truly the point here in any case," he continued. "The point is, you gave yourself to me, heart, body, and free will. Those were your words! I did nothing to coerce you!" He paused to let that sink in. She still refused to look at him. "The fact of the matter is that I reached out for you and you denied me. It does not matter the reason I reached for you. You will not do that again. If you do I will make you regret it." He raised his eyebrows, then squeezed her cheeks lightly between the fingers of one hand to force her to look at him. "Am I clear?" She still continued to glare at him. He sighed. "Sookie, I am not doing this just to be an asshole. There may be a time when you are in danger and I reach for you. If your first instinct is to jump away from me, how can I protect you?"

"I did agree to be yours, Eric," she finally found her voice. "But not so that you could turn me into some kind of robotic doormat!"

"That is not what I want either, and you should know that!" he retorted angrily. "But whether I reach for you to hold you, pleasure you, or punish you, you must not run from me. I will not tolerate it. If I have to turn into a hard-ass to make my point, so be it!" He glared back at her just as stubbornly as she was glaring at him.

Sookie took a minute to think about it. She sensed his hurt through the bond and it made her feel bad. It didn't matter any more who had started what. She now understood what he was trying to say. "There's just one more point I need to make too, Eric," she said quietly. He looked up, his eyes wide and his expression open. "I'm never going to mindlessly do what you say. Yes, I've agreed to give myself to you. I imagine I'll have to learn some new things about what you expect. I'll try."

"Sookie, will you trust me to do right by you and give you what you need? That is all I ask," he said sincerely. "You are right. I will teach you things you may object to at first. There is a reason for each of them. All I ask is your trust. I will explain anything you ask of me. Deal?"

It went against everything her Gran ever taught her about being an independent woman to agree to Eric's demands. She had agreed before fully knowing what she was agreeing to. This was new to Eric too though; not just to her. She had known of his need to be dominant. He had only ever enforced it in the bedroom, but that wasn't the true Eric Northman. The true Eric sat before her silently imploring her to listen to him. She had no doubt that he would force the issue if he had to, and she would end up following his rules anyway. "This is not easy for me. You know that right?" she asked him.

"Believe me Sookie," he said, the ghost of a smile on his face. "I realized from the moment you said you were mine that we were not in for an easy ride. I love you. I love your fire and your mind and your tenacity. I do not seek to take those from you. But you did give yourself to me and I will not let you out of that. You are mine." His expression had turned serious, determined.

She knew he was telling the absolute truth. She would have to trust him. "I don't want to hurt you by bringing Bill into this…" she started to say but stopped when his fangs clicked solidly into place.

"But?" he said harshly.

"He hurt me. I trusted him. You know what he did. I know you're not him Eric. You are nothing like him!" she hated the storm clouds she saw forming over his expression. "It'll be hard, is all I'm saying. I never trusted anybody until I trusted him, and he betrayed me in the worst way. So I hope you'll help me. I need you to NOT be him. I need you to be you."

Initially angered by her mention of Compton, Eric now thought he understood what she was saying. He knew how badly she'd been hurt. It was his job to make sure she wasn't hurt ever again. He knew something he did someday would hurt her but he would do what he could to avoid it. "Sookie, you have my word," he said softly. "And I have to tell you something else. I overreacted when you turned from me just now. I realize that. I cannot promise that I will not do it again. You have run from me so many times. I cannot stand for you to run from me. Do you understand?" he held her hand and brought it up to touch his lips to her fingertips, then he held her hand against his face.

This was something easy for her to understand! She knew how many times she had insulted Eric, turned him down, turned away from him. She'd spent the last few weeks hiding from him! "Why didn't you just say that Eric?" she smiled. "Now I get it." She reached out to him with her other hand and he pulled her close. He kissed her then, a kiss full of tenderness and hope. Right in the middle of it, she yawned.

"I think it is time for you to sleep," he said. "But first you must eat! How does this contraption work?" He walked over to the microwave and peered at it. He knew how to heat up a TrueBlood but not a whole meal.

"Let me do it," she nudged him aside and set the timer again to heat up her chicken and potatoes. Soon they were warm and Eric had persuaded her to eat in bed. Up there they sat while she yawned between bites.

"Do you remember what you said about the white robe and my other self?" he brought up.

"I do," she told him.

"As much as I would prefer you to sleep in the nude," he waggled his eyebrows at this, "I think you should sleep in this, or at least the robe to put both of our scents on it. Then put the robe on when I wake tomorrow."

"Oh, no, Eric!" she exclaimed. "What if you tear it to shreds? It's too beautiful for that! I can calm your bloodlust!"

"I am not willing to take that chance!" he said adamantly. "When I wake I expect to see it on you! This is non-negotiable!"

Giving in to Eric was so unfamiliar to Sookie but she finally agreed. Then Eric stripped down to a new pair of boxers – a deep blood red tonight – and held her in his arms while she went to sleep.

Some time later, with just over three hours left until dawn, Eric slipped downstairs into his "hidey-hole" (as Sookie liked to call it), and donned all black clothing. He'd made sure to secure the doors isolating Sookie's floor of the house so she would be protected. He hadn't even told her that there was a secret entrance/exit passage out of this room and under the house. It emerged out in the woods in a decrepit-looking outbuilding long forgotten about. When he had found it he had known it was perfect. Eric had done all the work digging the tunnel, putting in all the hardware and other security to keep this passage safe and unknown to anyone other than himself. Not even Pam knew about it. He crept out of the house and through the dark until he reached the door. It was so well hidden that even if someone had been standing right next to it, they wouldn't have known they were in trouble until Eric was on them. That was how Eric wanted it. He picked up his sword which he'd commissioned from Mr. Cataliades's Daemon family. They had also sold him the beads, made of a mysterious Daemon-made material called absenthemum, for Sookie's nightgown. The sword was made from the darkest black metal – metal that would never dull. It would remain sharp throughout eternity. The black metal gave off no glare from the moon or stars.

Eric silently took to the air and went up high enough that he could not be detected by even a Vampire below him. He'd pulled a black ski-mask over his face to hide his blond hair and pale skin. All that was visible were his glittering eyes as he scanned for the intruder. And suddenly, there he was. He was well hidden, also dressed in black and hunkered down in a place concealed by fallen logs. The intruder was concentrating on something small that he held in his hands. Eric could hear what appeared to be the sounds of feeding. WTF?

Swooping down so that he could land silently behind the intruder, Eric crept stealthily up behind him, making no sound whatsoever. Soon he reached around and held his blade at the throat of the intruder. "Do not speak. You will drop whatever is in your hands and show them to me!" His words were so quiet that only another Vampire would ever be able to hear them. The intruder abruptly stopped what he was doing and slowly raised his hands, hands which Eric could see were covered in blood. "Now stand and face me!" Eric ordered, wanting to see the Vampire's face before he killed him.

The Vampire knew better than to try to contend with the deadly sound of Eric's voice and did what he was told. He slowly rolled up onto his knees, letting the remains of what he'd held in his hands drop to the ground. As he stood, Eric stared in disbelief at what had been dropped, never letting his guard down. The Vampire stood, hands at shoulder level, and as he turned Eric got a glimpse of thick, dark hair done in.. a pompadour style? Eric then glimpsed rhinestones on the collar of what turned out to be a one-piece jumpsuit. His eyes went from the dead cat on the ground to the man's now familiar face, also covered in blood from the remains of his meal. Eric stared in disbelief.

"Bubba?"

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><p>What did you think? Please, do me the honor of expressing your opinion...<p>

I'd like to recommend to you a fantastic story with Eric and an Original Character. They are exploring a full, consensual, committed, 100% 24/7 Dominant/submissive relationship Eric-style (we will not go to that extent in this story). Find out how a big mouth can get you in a whole lotta trouble in DEADLY WORDS!  
>http :  / www . fanfiction . net /s/5436571/1/Deadly_Words


	4. Chapter 4

Let me start by writing a short A/N here. Many of you have expressed concern about Eric and Sookie's relationship and how he seems to want complete control over her. If you're familiar with my stories you know that I do like to write them in a Dominant/submissive relationship. That's what happens in a Dominant/submissive relationship. One partner has control over the other. BUT, Eric's goal isn't to put her down to the point where she has no fire and does everything he says. She will continue to voice her opinion, talk back, sass, and play with Eric. We're three, now four chapters in. Eric is still feeling his way around this new relationship that he's wanted for so long. He's making mistakes. She will never cow down and silently obey him in all things, but she will let him be the dominant partner. This Sookie enjoys that side of Eric, as she's expressed in the story. If you read this chapter, you'll see a lot of love, friendship, and camaraderie between Sookie and Eric as they unite against a common foe. I hope you'll stay with me but I do respect you if you're so uncomfortable with some facets of the relationship that you have to move on. Thank you for coming this far with me.

This story is unbeta'd. All mistakes are mine.

As always Alan Ball and HBO own True Blood. Charlaine Harris owns Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries. No copyright infringement is intended.

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><p>"Mr. Eric?" Bubba said cautiously. "What're you doin' out here? I thought you lived in Shreveport!"<p>

"I could ask you the same thing, Bubba," Eric said grimly. "This property belongs to a human woman. Why are you here?"

"King Bill sent for me!" Bubba stood to his full height proudly, still not quite as tall as Eric. "He said there's a pretty lady in this house who needs protectin' and I'm to sit out here and let him know if anybody goes in there."

"Have you seen anyone go in there?" Eric said smoothly. It was obvious that Bubba hadn't seen him arrive, so this must be his first night of "guard duty."

"I did see a man just about an hour ago," Bubba looked at the huge watch he wore. "But King Bill told me not to go over by the house so alls I did was contact him on this here." He held out a cell phone to Eric, who had to laugh. It was one of those with "big buttons," made for the human elderly who couldn't see or understand how to use a regular cell phone. The buttons even glowed in the dark!

"Did you call him, or send a text?" Eric wanted to know.

"Oh no! I didn't call him!" Bubba exclaimed. "No, he told me to type words and then hit that green button, so that's what I did!"

Eric took the time to listen to the night. His senses were better than most, if not all, Vampires in the area because of his age. He didn't sense anyone around them, and he did not quite let his guard down with Bubba either. Slow though he may be, Bubba was still a Vampire, and Eric had no idea why "King" Bill would have Bubba watching Sookie. Did Bill know something? Eric easily went through the phone's menu to find the sent messages. "MAN BY HOUSE" had been sent to what he knew was Bill's number almost exactly an hour ago. "Bubba, you stay right here!" he commanded, knowing the weaker Vampire would comply. He pocketed Bubba's cell phone and took to the air, looking for signs of intrusion around the house. The weather had been dry so there were no footprints visible. Scanning a very wide range before landing, he finally set down softly next to the front porch. He smelled a Were whose scent he did not know. He crept onto the porch and found signs that whoever this was had tried to pry away at the shutter surrounding the door and one window. Very faint marks were there, only enough that he could see. He was glad that he'd had them made of the most indestructible material he could purchase. He followed the scent around to the side of the house where he found more marks on a window shutter. Then something on the ground caught his attention. He reached down and picked it up. It was a button of some kind, but more importantly was the symbol etched on it. A swastika! Russell's wolves had worn this type of symbol, but their brand had contained more than just a simple swastika. He wished he could have seen if this Were also bore that brand. He was suspicious. Was this a sign that it was Russell coming after Sookie, or had it been planted there to point suspicion in that direction? But who knew that Russell was out, and for that matter, who knew what Eric had done to Russell? And something else bothered him. If Bill had planted Bubba out in Sookie's woods to watch for intruders, why hadn't he sent anyone to investigate when Bubba had made a report? Eric flew around to all edges of the property and he did find the scent of a car the Were must have driven there in. Otherwise, though, he found nothing.

He ran at Vamp speed back to Bubba and hit the dialer on the phone.

"No! Mr. Eric! You'll get me in trouble!" Bubba was exclaiming just as his royal hind-ass himself answered the phone.

"Bubba? Didn't you understand not to call me?" Came Bill Compton's voice across the line, irritated, after the phone had rung several times. Eric could hear two feminine voices in the background and rolled his eyes.

"He did understand not to call you but this, in fact, is not Bubba," Eric said smoothly.

"Eric?" Bill said, the pitch of his voice rising higher. "Why are you on Sookie's property?"

"I think it might be more prudent to ask you why you have Bubba sitting out here on her property, as the lady in question is bonded to me, and as such is under my protection," Eric demanded.

"Bonded? To you?" Bill's voice reeked of disbelief.

"Come now Bill," Eric said. "I find it very hard to believe that you did not know, unless your sense of smell has faded away?"

"What are you talking about?" Bill demanded.

"Sookie herself told me that I bonded to her while I was cursed and living with her. I know for a fact that the two of us met with you prior to the spell's being taken away, and also that you spent time consoling her as she longed for me later," Eric told him. "So, unless you can't tell when your former lover has another Vampire's blood inside of her…?" He left the question hanging in the air.

Bill sighed. "All right, yes Eric I did know you were bonded to her. But you took off and went back to Shreveport! What was I supposed to do?"

"Bill, as much as I would like to spend numerous hours debating this with you, the fact is that I cannot. I have a warm bed and an even warmer heart to get back to, so notify your guards that we are coming, now." Eric stated. "And unless you want your, uh, female companions to see Elvis with blood on his face and hands, I suggest you sequester them somewhere."

"Eric! No! Wait!" Bill sputtered as Eric hung up the phone and handed it back to Bubba.

"Come on Bubba," Eric motioned with his sword. "We are going to play the king a visit."

"You don't like King Bill, do you Mr. Eric?" Bubba observed as they walked along. When Eric gave him a glare, he shrugged his shoulders. "Just sayin!"

Eric gave an unnecessary sigh. "What I do not like is when one Vampire sets another to spy upon the home of a human he has no right to bother."

"You bonded to her?" Bubba smiled slyly at Eric, who smirked in return.

"Yes, she is mine," Eric gloated. "Something our monarch has yet to understand that he cannot interfere with."

"Uh, maybe I shouldn't say nothin,' Mr. Eric," Bubba told him. The tone of his voice was confused and unhappy, and this made Eric pause.

"Well, now that you've mentioned it, you will tell me," Eric ordered. He really liked Bubba and hated that Bill was getting him involved in whatever this was.

Bubba looked away from Eric, wringing his hands. He was confused. He liked both Eric and Bill but Bill had been nicer to him in the past. Eric kind of scared him. He didn't reside in Louisiana so he didn't owe his fealty to either one of them. But somebody was being dishonest and that didn't sit right with Bubba, so he told Eric. "King Bill told me the lady was his."

This angered Eric greatly but he was able to keep it hidden from Bubba. He raised both brows. "Oh really?" Bubba nodded guiltily, as though he had done something wrong. Eric smiled at him. "Thank you for telling me Bubba. When you meet the lady you will know the truth of the matter. She is full of my blood."

"I get to meet her?" Bubba seemed excited.

"I will give you an introduction," Eric promised him.

"Thanks Mr. Eric!" Bubba smiled excitedly. "Do you know if she has a cat?" Bubba had an unfortunate liking for the blood of cats.

"She used to," Eric told him. "Somebody killed her cat in a very brutal way. It upset her greatly!" Eric's fangs dropped, remembering how a member of Sookie's brother's work crew and the fiancée of one of her friends had murdered the cat and had tried to murder Sookie. Eric hadn't known her long at the time but he had wanted her.

They reached the perimeter of the "royal" property and were met by two guards. "I'm sorry, Sheriff Northman, but I can't let you cross the property line with that sword," they insisted, speaking respectfully to him even as they stood hip to hip holding automatic weapons no-doubt loaded with wooden bullets. The Fellowship of the Sun had unfortunately made that practice a little bit too wide-spread.

Eric rolled his eyes and stuck the sword into the ground. Then he looked the two Weres threateningly in the eyes. "It had better be there when I return!"

"Yes, sir!" one of them said while the other picked up his walkie. "On our way in, post four," he said quietly and received acknowledgment.

The house was in much better condition now than when Compton had come back to Bon Temps, Eric observed as he followed Bubba and the two guards through the foyer and into what Bill now called the "receiving" room on the right. They were told to wait and the king would be with them in a moment. Bill did, in fact, appear a few seconds later, barefoot and wearing nothing but a pair of blue jeans, his hair mussed. He probably wanted to gloat to Eric about how much tail he was getting now that he was king. Eric really couldn't care less. He had all he wanted in the farmhouse next door. Bubba immediately bowed to Bill at the waist, while Eric merely inclined his head a fraction of an inch.

"For what purpose is it necessary for you to come over here to talk to me?" Bill said petulantly.

"I did not wish to alarm Sookie by the sounds of raised voices on her property," Eric told him. "Now, I wish to thank you for taking the safety of MY Bonded into consideration, but as I am staying there with her, there is no further need." He glared directly into Bill's eyes. "Besides, what good is your protection when you do not bother to check out reports of intruders on the property?" He raised his brows and cocked his head.

"Since when are you staying there?" Bill laughed. "When last I heard you were back to entertaining everything with a pussy that walked into Fangtasia. When did you come back? And what do you mean there was an intruder?"

"Last evening," Eric responded calmly, refusing to let Bill's insults bother him. Then he walked to the fireplace and firmly set the button down on the mantel. "A little something I found around the marks of a Were trying to break in." He told Bill.

"Why don't you just leave her alone Eric?" Bill demanded. "Do you know that I sat with her for more than two weeks while she cried over you?"

"A fact which you should have made me aware of!" Eric growled. "I have been calling her at least twice daily for weeks, and she has refused to answer or respond! Only out of frustration did I finally come there last night to find out what was happening!"

"What have you done to her?" Bill shouted. "As the reigning monarch, I have the right to…"

"Leave us the fuck alone!" Eric finished for him. "You may be the reigning monarch, but you do not have the right to interfere between another Vampire and his Bonded. She is mine to do with as I see fit!"

Bill knew that in this one thing he was powerless. "Come on Eric! We both know that you care nothing for her beyond using her for your own gain and a few hours of fun between her legs!"

Eric was across the room in a flash, pinning Bill up against the wall by his throat, fangs out. Two security guards had run in, but Bill waved them away. Bubba cowered in a corner. "You will not speak of her again in that manner!" Eric said in his softest, most deadly voice. "King or not, I will destroy you if you do. She is a lady unworthy of your crassness." He held Bill there for another few seconds, glaring at him, before he put his fangs away and walked back to stand in front of the fireplace.

"MY crassness?" Bill was foolish enough to go on. "I was a gentleman with her! I asked her to marry me!"

"As have I," Eric stated truthfully.

This caught Bill off guard. "You what?"

"Sookie has agreed to become my bride, both in a Vampire pledging and in a human ceremony. We had planned to bring the good news to you together once things calmed down." Eric couldn't help but gloat over the fact that Sookie had said 'yes' to him but had not done so with Bill.

Bill looked thunderstruck for a moment. "I can block the ceremony, you know," he finally said.

Eric rolled his eyes and shook his head. "You claim to love her. Would you really do that to her, especially once you find out that she wants to be wed to me? I did not coerce her in any way. You will see this when you speak to her."

"And when will you allow that?" Bill said sarcastically.

"I find that we may have to stay out of sight for the most part, at least in the immediate future," Eric told him, smirking. "It has come to my attention that Russell Edgington is back." He gave Bill a meaningful look, as Bill had been the only witness when Eric had Buried Russell in concrete. Eric suspected that Bill had aided Russell to escape, but wanted Bill to know that he did know. 'This button bears a swastika and I suspect his involvement." Eric did not reveal his other suspicion, that the button had been planted to make him think it was Russell, when in fact it may not be.

"Where did you hear this?" Bill asked suspiciously.

"I have my sources," Eric said, not willing to reveal the advantage that Godric could present. "Let us just say that I know where there is a big hole in the ruined floor of a parking garage." He had gone there a few times after imprisoning Russell in concrete just to walk over the spot where he was buried and assure himself that Sookie was still safe. It had to have been very recently that Russell had gotten out.

Bill seemed to be at a loss for words but he tried to hide his unease. "Bubba, you may go wash up if you wish, and go to your day's rest. I see that the lady is safe." He smiled gently at Bubba.

"Thank you, King Bill," Bubba said, bowing again. "Good to see you again, Mr. Eric!" Eric also gave him a friendly smile. It wasn't Bubba's fault that he was being used by an asshole. Eric decided that he needed to get back to Sookie before he was missed. He didn't want her angry with or worried about him, but he knew he would have to tell her he'd gone out tonight to visit Bill.

As Bubba left the room, Bill's demeanor changed. Where a moment ago he had been the haughty king, suddenly he adapted an air of camaraderie. "I have two beauties upstairs," he said with a smile, clapping Eric on the shoulder. "I am willing to share!" He waggled his eyebrows at Eric.

Eric remained stoic. He knew what Bill was up to. First, he knew that Bill had long harbored lust for him and would love to get him involved in a scene of some kind. Second, he wanted to test Eric's loyalty to Sookie. Eric decided not to put Bill down for his obvious trickery. "Thank you, Your Highness," he said, inclining his head. "I have all that I want waiting for me at home! Now, if I may, I must get back to her."

Bill tried to hide his disappointment. "Of course, Eric. But I would like to see the two of you together in the coming nights."

As much as he hated having to bow to the authority of Bill Fucking Compton, Eric knew that he must. "We will make it so." Bill walked with Eric to the door and then Eric started heading across the property back to where he'd left his sword. Once he had retrieved it, he took to the air, circling back toward the Compton house. Bill still stood on the porch, gazing in the direction of Sookie's house, which could just be seen through the trees across the cemetery. He had his hand on the crotch of his jeans and was rubbing himself! Eric made a decision. He couldn't get Sookie out of here fast enough!

So fast that he couldn't be seen, Eric landed and made his way to the outbuilding where he stashed his sword and hurried back up into the house. He was anxious to be with her, to feel her warmth next to him, to hold her and reassure himself that she was his. Soon enough he was back on the second floor where he secured the security doors, climbed back into the silk boxers that she loved, and eased into bed with her. "Eric? Where have you been?" she asked sleepily, turning to him and wrapping her arms around him.

"Ssshhh Love," he soothed her. "I am here now." As he wrapped his body around hers, he sensed an undercurrent of upset from her. He would tell her the truth when he rose tomorrow. She knew something was up and he wouldn't try to hide. He wouldn't let her keep secrets from him and he realized that this went both ways. He had to give her his honesty as well. He couldn't help but laugh at himself as he laid there waiting for dawn to arrive. All of the plans he'd made, all of the rules he'd planned to enforce on _her_ to keep her completely open to him.. All of those applied to him too. He could neither close a door in her face as he would let her close one to him. He knew one thing without a doubt. He would not be Bill Compton. He would honor her and cherish her love the way it was meant to be cherished. The thought of Bill staring at Sookie's house while he stroked himself gave him the creeps. He would not leave Sookie alone in this house without his protection again. Ever. Those were his last thoughts as the sun came up, and death claimed him for the day.

Sookie slept the entire day next to Eric and was roused when she heard him growling menacingly in her ear. She was face down and he was lying on top of her, pinning her there with his body. His hand came around to encircle her throat and she froze completely, closing her eyes. She knew from experience that the best way to calm him was not to struggle or speak. The signals coming through the bond were not as threatening as they had been the day before. As he held her, both hands felt the silk at her shoulders, and suddenly he buried his nose in her hair and she space behind her neck. His growl turned from scary to contented. "Sookie," he whispered. She relaxed, but not completely. She knew he still needed blood, and sex, and he would take it. His amnesiac counterpart's style had ranged from confused and unrestrained to downright brutal depending on his mood. She could see that this Eric was reacting to the scents on her new robe and his madness was calmed, but how he would take what he needed would be up to him.

Eric was working against his bloodlust, trying to keep himself from ripping every stitch of clothing from her body. But the new robe had done what Sookie said and calmed him enough so that he was aware of his actions. Before it got the best of him he used his knees to part her legs, pulling down the front of his boxers and getting ready to enter. But she wasn't ready. He touched her and she was wet, but not as wet as he wanted her to be. He knew how to get her there. He grabbed both of her wrists in one hand and pinned them under her body, using his other hand to spank her lightly while he used his tongue and fangs to tease her earlobe and the most sensitive spot behind her left ear. When she giggled and tried to block his fangs, he spanked her again and pulled her head to the side, going for her blood. He heard her softly moan and knew she was his, so he used his other hand to guide him home and took her, hard and fast. It wasn't long at all before he was coming, and taking her right along with him. He raised his head and roared his pleasure to his Gods, finally settling down on top of her with his weight resting on his elbows, still buried deep inside.

"Good evening, Lover," he said contentedly.

She rested her head on his hands and kissed his fingertips. "Good evening yourself," she chimed back at him in her soft and musical voice.

Eric knew that if he relaxed the way he wanted to, he would collapse on top of her. He lifted himself away and she protested, not wanting to lose the intimate contact. He told her to wait just a moment and while he moved onto his back she pulled his boxers completely off him. Eric smiled at her seeming need to have him naked for her and he pulled her back up onto his chest. He was still semi-hard and it was she who moved him back to her entrance and slid smoothly onto him, both of them sighing happily. Eric pulled the blankets back up over both of them and Sookie went back to sleep. He started thinking about what he wanted to do this night. His cell phone was on the night stand and he reached for it, sending Pam a quick text. He wanted an assortment of boxes delivered to this house within the hour and was specific – boxes for clothing, books, and anything else Sookie might want to take. He had gone through Sookie's refrigerator, cabinets, and pantry a few times while he'd walked this house many nights as she slept. With his perfect memory he was able to recall all the food she had in the house from her favorite brand of tea to how many pounds of chicken and hamburger she kept in her freezer. A truck was to be filled with all of the food he listed and delivered to Fangtasia. Later, Eric would give instructions for its final delivery. Whether she liked it or not, Sookie was moving tonight. He was not taking her to one of his safehouses, either. He was taking her to his primary residence. He debated whether or not to let her see just yet where he lived – he knew at some point he would have to allow her to come and go from there. But that presented a problem. There were always people – Weres, Vampires, all manner of supernaturals – looking to gain an advantage on Eric. There would be those who would try to follow Sookie to find out where he lived once their association was made public. Sookie would hate it if she had to be locked up in his house for the rest of her life, and Eric knew he could never do that to her. Sookie was a social creature, a creature of the sun. She brought the sun into Eric's life. He would never deny her the sun. She also had to be around people to maintain her shields, and she had family and friends who were important to her. They would have to work something out. But for the time being, while Russell Edgington's whereabouts and intentions were unknown, Sookie would have to remain sheltered in Eric's lair and she would not know where she was. He hoped Sookie would understand why it had to be that way, and that he would not keep things this way forever. Back when they had first met, when his plans for her had been to take, force, and dominate, things had been simpler, he thought. He chuckled at that. Now that he loved her and planned to deal with her as a partner and companion, his life would be so much more complicated! He could always revert back to the original plan, and would if he had to, but he was loath to do it. If Sookie Stackhouse ever stopped loving him, that would be the day that even the moon and stars ceased to exist for Eric. She meant that much to him.

She started to wake. Eric put down his phone and began rubbing her back with his skillful fingers. When she lifted her head from his chest and opened her eyes, she had that smile ready for him. The smile he would kill to keep, and die if he lost. "Well rested, My Love?" he asked softly as she moved forward to kiss him. She yawned, turning her head to the side and apologizing about "morning breath." Eric couldn't help but laugh and he told her again that no smell that came from her was unpleasant.

"You haven't been around me after my Granddaddy Earl's chili then, that's for sure," she joked, a joke he completely didn't get. "Never mind Baby," she smiled at his obvious confusion. But then her bladder forced her to get up and run for the other room. Eric sat up on his side of the bed, glad when he didn't have to remind her to keep the door open. When Sookie came back into the room wearing nothing but the ivory robe, Eric had to contain himself. He wanted to take her back to bed but tonight they couldn't do that. "Why are you getting dressed already?" she wanted to know. He had put on a fresh pair of black track pants and his hair was sticking up all over the place. He looked so adorable that Sookie couldn't help but wrap her arms around him and hold on tight.

"As much as I would like to spend tonight as we did last night, we cannot," he said regretfully. He had picked up the remote and opened the security doors to the rest of the house. "There are things we must discuss, and an unpleasant visit to make."

"Visit?" she was confused.

"Let us go downstairs and get you something to eat while I tell you," he said, holding out his hand to her.

"You sit down first for just a minute!" she ordered him, causing him to tweak one eyebrow at her. "I'm gonna fix your hair!" She told him firmly. He was willing to sit down for that, so he obediently sat back down on the bed while Sookie got to her knees behind him with a comb and brush. She loved the way Eric's hair felt in her hands. She'd never been especially fond of long hair on men, but with Eric it was another story. It suited him and she hoped he'd never change it. She took her time getting the tangles out and brushing it until it shone while Eric closed his eyes with simple contentment. He had never allowed anyone close enough to care for him in this way, not even when he had turned Pam. But Sookie was a care-taker, a nurturer. Eric had seen that and coveted that part of her when he'd seen her with Compton. Who was he kidding? He'd coveted every part of her. Now he had her and he would never let her go.

Just as she finished tightening a black covered elastic band around his ponytail, he reached back and grabbed her around the waist, growling playfully and snapping his fangs at her body. "You had better get dressed, Lover, before I put all your hard work to waste!"

"I would like to shower first, Eric," she told him, giggling and pushing at his hands and hungry fangs.

.We will do that later," he told her firmly. He had two reasons for denying her request, one of them being that he wanted to remind her that she had given her body over to him, therefore giving him the right to command even this small thing about it. He was giving his body to her as well. If she told him to shave a heart shape into the middle of his chest-hair, he would, but he wasn't about to suggest that to her. For now he would keep the control to himself until they had gotten used to each other, but eventually she would know. The other reason he would tell her shortly.

Sookie was still getting used to this facet of their relationship. She had allowed Eric to reign over her body completely when he had been cursed, and he was only just back in her life. She felt incredibly sexy at his obvious interest in every little thing from the way she shaved her legs to the kind of lotion she wore. She found it easy to be submissive to Eric in at least this way. "What do you have to tell me?" she wanted to know.

He went to her dresser and threw some jeans and a T-shirt at her. When she tried to go around him to get undergarments to go with them, he told her no. "I have something else I would like you to wear."

"But if I don't wear a bra under my clothes it's very uncomfortable!" she protested.

Eric did not consider this to be disobedience or sass. This was simply a request to be comfortable. "This may help," he said, waggling his eyebrows at her. Pam had been a great help in this matter because before a few days ago the existence of what he was about to show Sookie was unknown to him. He got into the drawer where he had placed his boxers next to her things and drew out a garment, handing it to her with a fangy smile.

She held it up. It was actually quite pretty. It was a soft pink made of lace and heavy silk, with elastic just where it was needed and padding as well… except in one place. It was a cupless shelf bra. She looked at him like he was crazy. "Is this what I think it is?" she asked incredulously.

"It is," he said simply. "Pamela chose it for you. She said that it would give you all the support you would need."

"And give you every chance to get your hands on me!" she exclaimed with a deep blush. She wasn't sure how she felt about this. She knew that this new life with Eric would mean a lot of changes. She knew what kind of a man Eric was. He was very forward, sexually. Bill had been very old-fashioned, once asking her to dress in petticoats! There had been a time when Sookie would have thought such a garment shocking, indecent even. But, standing there staring at it, seeing the sparkle in Eric's eyes and knowing he wouldn't be able to put his fangs away if he tried, she couldn't help but get a smile on her face. This was very risqué! "I'll try it on one condition!" she finally said.

"And that is?" He was willing to hear her out.

"If it makes me look, or feel, ridiculous, I won't wear it!" She told him adamantly.

He knew that she was a genteel southern lady and he didn't want to do anything to make her feel like she was anything less than beautiful. "Sookie, you made a promise to me, remember?" he asked. At her nod, he continued. "It is not my wish to humiliate you. You are a beautiful and sexy woman. I want you to feel that way. I believe this will make you feel sexy." He smiled a rakish smile that Sookie couldn't help but melt over. "Your body is mine, given to me of your own free will. You have given me the right to command even what you wear." He reached out and put his arms around her waist. "There will be times when I will do that, and tonight is one of those times. If you do not like it, I will not force it on you, but you will wear nothing under your clothing."

She decided that this was the best compromise she was going to get from Eric right now, so she turned her back to him and asked him to help her take off the robe. She would have remained facing away from him, but his gentle hands on her shoulders turned her to face him. When she blushed, he decided to say more.

"You have no reason to be shy with me, Love," he said gently. "I have seen, touched, and tasted every part of you. And I always let you see every part of me. When do I ever turn from you or go to another room to get dressed, or undressed? Here, will this help?" Since he was already dressed, he sat down on the bed and took his pants back off. "There. You see, now I am as naked as you are." He smiled encouragingly at her.

She got that secret smile on her face again and cast her eyes down. At this show of submission Eric had to will his manhood to stay down by thinking of anything unpleasant he could. Having sex with Bill Compton. Ugh. That did it. He didn't want her to think that getting dressed in front of him was entertainment for him. He respected her, and he kept thinking of Bill Compton's hand on his balls to keep his body behaving. She undid the hooks at the back and pulled it on, turning around for his help fastening them. After he did this, he turned her around and helped her to fix the straps so that she was comfortable and well supported. He thought the bra looked magnificent on her. Her breasts stood high and proud, the shelf holding them at just the right angle, giving enough support on the sides that she didn't spill in all different directions. He knew he could make her nipples hard for him in a second but he was determined to behave himself. She took his hand and dragged him to the bathroom, knowing that he would follow anyway, to look at herself in the mirror. The pink blended well with the creaminess of her skin and she found to her surprise that she didn't look like a slut. This new garment was comfortable and held everything up. She looked into Eric's eyes in the mirror and her eyes shone. She liked it. So did he.

Eric disappeared for a moment and came back with the T-shirt he'd pulled out of the drawer earlier. He helped to slip it over her head. As soon as the fabric touched her bare nipples the sensation went right to her core. Every movement of her upper body caused a new throb down below. She heard Eric take a deep breath in and felt his manhood standing in attention at her back. "Eric! It makes me horny! I can't walk around all day like this!" She protested, turning bright red and burying her head in his chest, embarrassed.

"It makes me horny too, Lover! Can you see?" he whispered conspiratorially, taking her hand and putting it on him. She looked up at him and they both burst out laughing.

"I will do this for you Eric!" she told him firmly. "On one condition!"

"Which is?"

"You damn well better be ready to take care of me after we get back from wherever it is you want me to go dressed – or undressed – like this!" Sookie wasn't stupid. Eric had mentioned going out tonight, right before he had dropped this bomb on her.

"Oh, I will be more than ready, Lover!" he said enthusiastically. "The thought of you walking around all night like that, knowing that all I have to do is put my hands…" And his hands started to travel up underneath her shirt.

"Oh, no you don't!" she stopped his hands. "First you're going to explain why this is so important to you!"

Eric knew when he was defeated. Dominant though he was, he wasn't about to stomp out his Sookie's fire. He loved it too much. The fun they would have when they returned home later! To his home, he reminded himself, not this one. They made quick work of getting dressed in the bedroom together, Eric also going commando at Sookie's insistence (if I have to, so do you!), then headed downstairs. Eric wanted Sookie to have her breakfast before he hit her with everything that was going to happen this night.

Soon they were sitting together at the table, Sookie having a big plate of ham and eggs, Eric with her wrist in his hand having his breakfast from her for the second time that night. It painted a very domestic picture to Sookie and she decided that this was better than the other "normal" she had once imagined. The other "normal" hadn't included someone like Eric as her mate, either. All in all she was sure she had come out better than she'd ever thought she would. Eric healed her and gave her a tender kiss the way he always did, and she kissed his lips the way she liked to do after he fed, to show him her love and acceptance. Eric's heart may not have been beating, but it was always warmed after such a display. He decided that he'd better start talking.

"Sookie, I have a confession to make," he started. She had washed her plate and was sitting with the last of her coffee in her cup. She had known something was coming and was glad he was finally ready to tell her. "I went out last night, after you went to sleep."

"I know you did," she responded after pausing for several seconds. Eric stared at her in disbelief. She had not been waiting to scream at him when he'd come back in, after all.

"You are not angry?" he asked. He remembered the undercurrent of something he'd felt within the bond that morning as he'd slipped into bed with her.

"At first I was," she said, pursing her lips. "I was convinced you'd lied to me."

"Sookie, I…" he started to say, but she held a finger up.

"I went through the whole conversation in my head. You never said you wouldn't go out. You said you wouldn't put yourself in danger," she told him, surprising him again. She looked into his eyes. "I know how you are, Eric. You're obsessive when it comes to protecting me. I love you for that!" she smiled into his eyes but then went on. "But we have to talk about better communication! I don't want you telling me what you think I want to hear and then doing something else. What would happen if I had given you such a vague answer and then sneaked out of the house last night?

He knew. He would have been angry. He would have come to find her, and he would have punished her. He might have even locked her up in the house for the immediate future, just to make a point. He would have justified his actions by saying she needed to obey him for her protection. But even this sat wrong with him. "Sookie, I would not have tolerated such behavior from you." He hung his head, peeking up at her before going on. "But you understand the difference between the two of us, do you not? I am stronger, more capable of defending myself. And we have agreed that I am dominant here!"

"Yes Eric, I did give you control, but that does not make a double standard all right here!" she insisted. "I understand that I gave myself to you and I stand by that. I won't object to you making the decisions. All I ask in return is your honesty. Can you give me that?" She took one of his hands in both of hers and kissed his palm. "You have me. I'm not going anywhere! You don't have to paint a pretty picture for me of what our lives will be. I am yours." She placed his hand around her throat, effectively showing him her trust and submission. He tightened his grip, but only slightly, enough to show her that he accepted what she offered.

"You understand that you will not always like what I tell you?" he asked. "That I may not always be able to take your feelings into account in my decisions?" She had asked for honesty so he wanted to lay it all on the table. "You also understand that you must not – and I cannot emphasize this enough Sookie – _must not_ question me in front of other supernaturals, especially Vampires? If you did that I might have no choice but to punish you in front of them! If I am going to give you what you seek, you must understand all that it entails."

"I just want to know where you are, Eric!" she explained. "And if somebody like Bill tries to plant lies in my head, I can tell him to go to hell! So that we are always one step ahead of them! You know?" Her voice was impassioned, showing him just how strongly she felt about what she was saying.

Eric had never taken this into account and he was impressed that she had thought of it. His respect for her rose even higher, if that was possible. "Sookie, you amaze me!" he enthused.

"Of course I won't embarrass you in front of them Eric! I know it's a matter of life and death! I've been in enough scrapes now that I can't forget!" She continued.

Eric was already convinced. "I will give you what you ask of me. Please, Love, do not ever make me regret it!"

Sookie smiled her "only-for-Eric" smile and the rest of the world evaporated for him. "So, what happened?" she asked about the previous night, waiting expectantly.

It took him a few seconds to get his bearings back. She'd truly caught him off guard! "You will not believe who I found out there, so I am going to show you later. And, we must go to see Bill."

"Bill? Why?" She let her distaste be known. She hadn't told Eric that the last time she'd seen Bill he had tried to get her into his bed. All of the consolation over Eric's apparent abandonment and his gestures of friendship had been lies. She knew Eric would kill Bill if he ever found out. She had told Bill never to come back, that she belonged to Eric even if he didn't want her any more. She had attributed the fact that Bill hadn't tried to force the issue to his guilty conscience, not knowing that Eric had come to her house nightly while she slept, sometimes even coming inside.

"For some reason, our noble "king" decided to set someone to guard your property and report comings and goings to him," Eric explained. "I found that person on your property last night."

"Did you kill him?" As much as the idea grieved her, Eric was a Vampire, and a very possessive one at that. She wouldn't put it past him to kill anyone on her property who was not supposed to be there.

To her surprise, he smiled. "No, Sookie, I did not kill him. You will get to meet him later!" He didn't explain further, leaving her to wonder why she would "get to meet" the spy Bill had set on her property. "I confronted Bill and told him of our plans for the future."

"Oh, I bet he was full of congratulations and good wishes, wasn't he?" she replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

Eric got the joke and laughed with her. "You have no idea! Anyway, he thinks that I am somehow forcing you to be with me, and he has demanded that we appear before him together."

"I don't have to do anything he says!" she insisted.

"No, Sookie, you do not. But as much as it offends me, I must respond to his demand," Eric told her disgustedly. "I thought we would go over there tonight."

Sookie swiftly put two and two together. "Is that why the..?" she pointed at her chest, the cupless bra. "And why you wouldn't let me take a shower?" Her eyebrows raised in an almost perfect imitation of Eric.

This was exactly Eric's reasoning. He had wanted to flaunt to Compton that the two of them were having a lot of sex, that Sookie was much freer sexually as a result, and rub in his face that he had lost Sookie thoroughly. But now he sat nervously, waiting for her reaction. To his surprise and extreme satisfaction, she laughed vigorously and threw her arms around him.

"Eric! We have to do better than this!" she cried, tears running down her face as she continued to laugh. Then she surprised him even more by reaching for the waistband of his pants. "I have to be thoroughly ruined by you!" She winked. Then she thought better of what she was doing and stood up, grabbing his hand and heading for the living room. He let her pull him along, curious and extremely aroused by her behavior. She sat him down on the couch and then got on her knees in front of him. She reached for the waistband of his pants again, but then shyness overtook her. "I, um, well, you'll have to help me. I'll swallow most of it, but I think you should get some on me. Maybe even in my hair!" she giggled, and Eric finally knew what she was up to.

"No Sookie, you do not have to do that!" he said, smiling as he pulled her up on to the couch with him. He paused for a second to think 'Am I really turning down a blow job?' Yes, he was, because Sookie was worthy of more respect. "We already smell of each other from this morning!"

"I want to be thoroughly saturated with you so that it's coming out my pores!" she insisted. "And, can we do the blood sharing thing too?"

Eric could only sit and stare at her. Once again he marveled at his luck, and wondered what he had done to please the Gods so much that they had sent her to him. Her like-mindedness to him and enthusiasm pleased him greatly! "No, here is what we do, Lover! I am already all over you. You must be all over me as well!" He pulled his pants off and lay down on the couch, then went for her jeans. She smiled hugely for him and let him get them off her at Vampire speed, then straddled him as he helped her. She was glad that this was a big, wide couch, or they wouldn't have been able to do this. Eric reached up under her shirt and pinched her nipples, and she decided that she loved this bra that he'd given her. She wasn't as wet as he wanted her to be – he didn't want to hurt her – so he pulled her down onto him to kiss her deeply, his tongue moving in and out and doing what another body part would be doing within minutes. He reached down and while one thumb circled her little pleasure button, the fingers of the other hand pushed inside her, gaining rhythm along with his tongue. He brought her to the edge like that with his hands, then stopped and pushed inside of her. This time he took control, moving them together in unison to put maximum pleasure on her clit as he thrust deep inside. In just moments they were both screaming their release together, and Sookie lay down onto his chest to stop the room from spinning. "Sookie, you are the sexiest woman on this planet," he whispered as his hands were busy playing with her nipples under her T-shirt. His hands were wet with her juices and he was "spreading the wealth." All too soon, he was lifting her off of his shaft and setting her down on his abdomen so that their combined fluids would leak onto both of them. He smeared everything over his stomach and both of their thighs, then kneaded her ass with both hands until he had rubbed it into her skin. "Satisfied, Love?" he asked her as both of them were now completely filthy with their come and other juices..

"Not yet," she said, and she slid down so that she could lick his stomach clean, then she shimmied back up his body, giving him total torso-to-torso contact, and thoroughly kissing him when she was close enough.

Eric had to put his hands on her waist to stop her movements. "Sookie, if you do not stop that we will never leave the house!" he threatened, growling at her and flipping them over so that he was on top. He put his hands on her and quickly stimulated her to another orgasm, sealing his mouth over hers in a hungry kiss when she would have screamed his name. "Have I not satisfied you yet, wench?" he teased her when she wrapped her legs around him and ground against him yet again. He spanked her twice with his open palm, and she rotated her pelvis one more time, this time giving HIM a growl. Before the sex was completely gone from their blood, he sat them up, holding her in front of him, bit into his wrist and offered it to her as he sank his aching fangs into her throat.

The blood exchange finally calmed them both, and they were a hot mess! The beautiful ponytail that Sookie had worked so hard to put in Eric's hair was half pulled out, and he wondered when she had started pulling _his _hair. He was quite sure that he must have enjoyed it, though. Laughing and holding hands, they ran up the stairs to change clothes and put themselves back together. Sookie insisted on wearing a thin white T-shirt with that bra that Eric was almost regretting having given to her. Her nipples poked out enticingly even when she wasn't aroused, and it set his teeth on edge to think that soon Compton would be staring at them. But he consoled himself in the knowledge that those nipples were HIS, and that Compton would never touch them, or any other part of her, again. It was a serious offense punishable by up to final death to touch the Bonded of another Vampire. He would enjoy the show he and Sookie were about to put on for their illustrious king right before he whisked her out from under the bastard's nose for good.

He sent a text message over to Compton to ask if it was an appropriate time to stop by. Almost too quickly, he received a reply that it was. Eric deactivated the security shutter only for the front door, leaving everything else intact, and they strolled hand-in-hand across the lawn toward the Compton estate. Eric knew, from his spying last night, that Bill could see them coming, the picture of love and domestic bliss. He had brought Sookie in on this little joke, so she made it a point to pull herself in close to Eric and lean on his shoulder, both arms around his waist, as they walked. 'Payback is a bitch, asshole,' she thought toward Bill as she smiled adoringly up at Eric. They'd had a conversation right before leaving the house. In front of Bill, not only would Sookie show how much she loved Eric, but she would put on a show of total submission to him. This was something that Bill had never accomplished with Sookie. Had he made her submissive to him, his mission to bring her to the former queen might have been successful. Eric thanked the Gods that it had not been successful. To see "his" Sookie in complete love with Eric Northman, presenting the picture of perfect submissive beauty, would drive Compton completely crazy.

"Here we go," Eric whispered as they approached the two security guards who would be escorting them, the same two from last night. They were both familiar with Sookie and greeted her with familiarity. She remained silent and looked to Eric before greeting either of them. At his nod, she demurely greeted each one by name as Eric glared daggers at them, laughing hysterically inside at the expressions on their faces. As they approached Bill, Sookie clung to Eric as they stared lovingly into each other's eyes; he hoped it was enough to make Compton want to puke. As was appropriate protocol, Bill greeted Eric first, and Eric gave him the same insolent head nod that he had the previous evening. Then Bill reached out to embrace Sookie and Eric went ballistic, baring his fangs and taking his king by the throat as he thrust her protectively behind him. Again, Bill waved off his two guards when they would have attacked Eric. The scary thing, Eric noted to himself, was that it was not an act. He really did want to rip out the other Vampire's throat for even attempting to touch his Sookie. For her part, she did not jump in and tell Eric to back off as she would have done in the past. Instead, he held his arm out to her and she sidled up against him as he placed her back in his possessive and protective embrace.

"Sookie, what has he done to you?" Bill exclaimed, appalled at the display. Only then did a breeze blow through, carrying on it the full revelation of Sookie's and Eric's earlier activities. His cock twitched violently in his pants as his nostrils flared, giving him a full whiff. Behind their backs, Eric and Sookie pinched each other to stop from laughing wildly at the sight, the bond between them reveling in the humor of the moment.

Once again, Sookie looked at Eric as though requesting permission to speak. Only at his nod did she say "He hasn't done anything to me Bill." Her voice was neutral, but laced with enough acid to let him know that she hadn't forgotten, or forgiven, his last actions toward her. Eric sensed her ire and made a note to ask her about it later.

"He hasn't done anything to you?" Bill demanded in disbelief. "You aren't even allowed to speak without his permission, and he hasn't done anything to you? Sookie, Sweetheart, I can protect you from him!" He reached out again, only to have his way once more blocked by Eric.

"Attempt to touch my Bonded again and you will find your head separated from your body," Eric threatened through his bared fangs. "Even your guards know that I would be in the right, be you king or not!" He felt Sookie rooting him on through the bond and sent back his amusement, even though he was not feeling particularly amused. Bill had the good sense to step back. Eric and Sookie repeated the action of him reaching out for her, and her coming back to the comfort of his embrace. The sight of Compton's eyes bugging out every time they did that was great entertainment for them both! To add insult to injury, she kissed him on the cheek and he winked at her. "She has graciously agreed to be mine, in ALL ways, and for that I honor and respect her. Sookie, you may speak freely with him." He kissed the back of her hand and she rubbed her cheek against his shoulder.

"Thank you Eric," she said sweetly, casting her eyes down and batting her lashes at him. Compton looked like he had just swallowed a turd. "What do you want to know, Bill?" she was civil and polite but devoid of warmth when addressing Bill.

"Come inside, please," Bill invited them. "Surely, Eric, you will allow her to sit comfortably?" Sookie did not move until Eric led the way into the house, where he seated her in a comfortable chair by the fireplace and stood behind her. She continued to hold his hand.

Bill wanted to take her hands into his own and make sure that Sookie was all right with Eric, but he wasn't about to test Eric's patience again. "Sookie, Eric tells me that you are to be pledged. Is this true?"

She squeezed Eric's hand. "Yes it is. Why would Eric lie to you about that?"

"He has agreed to a human ceremony as well?" Bill was visibly upset by this, having once asked her to marry him the same way.

"Eric loves me, Bill," she told him. "I don't see why you seem to have a problem with that."

"Do you love him?" Bill had the gall to ask.

"More than anything, Bill. More than _anything_." She squeezed Eric's hand again and the bond told him that was true.

Bill got up and began to pace. "Sookie, you don't have to do this. You are in my house. I am his king. You have but to say the word and I can take you under my protection!" He was almost begging, he sounded so desperate.

"Why on earth would I do that Bill?" she seethed at him. "Eric loves me. He understands me. He doesn't lie to me." She was glaring now and he couldn't stand it.

"Has he told you what he was doing last night?" Bill inquired petulantly. He was determined to do or say something that would get Sookie away from Eric. If he could only get her alone again! He knew if he could just talk to her without Eric's interference, she would see reason. He was delusional.

"He said he was over here," Sookie responded calmly, effectively shutting Bill down. "He said you threatened to block our pledging!"

"Not threatened, Sweetheart, offered!" Bill implored her. "I offered to get you out of this mess!"

Eric thought it was time to break in. "I take great offense at you calling my Bonded your sweetheart," he said icily. "She is in fact MY sweetheart. Isn't that right, Sookie?" He smiled at her again, sending his love through the bond. She smiled back.

"I am simply yours, Eric." She crooned at him, sending him lust.

Bill got another whiff of sex from them and was suddenly transfixed, staring at her chest. He must have just realized what she wasn't wearing under the T-shirt. She decided to antagonize him a bit more. She stood up and turned to Eric, rubbing her chest against him. In response he wrapped both arms around her and kissed her deeply, passionately. But he never let down his guard, and this kiss was for show, to gauge Compton's reaction. Bill crushed the edge of his desk with his hand. Sookie turned back around and sat in her chair, her nipples now straining against the thin white shirt she wore. Something else was quite noticeably straining against both men's pants. Then Compton thought he might try a different tack, to try to make Eric look bad.

"Eric, you know I am your King," he began.

Eric knew exactly where he was going with this and he almost laughed out loud. "Yes Your Majesty," he replied, for once using the title that Compton did not deserve.

"You know that I am entitled to your fealty, and as such, the use of your property should I deem it necessary," Compton went on, walking casually toward the two of them.

Eric's hand went to Sookie's shoulder and he squeezed it encouragingly. He wasn't sure how she would react to what he knew Compton was about to ask of him. "Of course, Your Majesty." There, he'd said it twice.

"Sheriff Northman, I require the use of your human," Compton said smoothly, his fangs dropping down as he stared hungrily at Sookie.

Sookie's hand went to Eric's and the tension in the room could have been cut with a knife. She didn't know if Bill could legitimately ask this of Eric, and suddenly she was afraid. Eric sensed this and tried to use the bond to reassure her. Then, Eric's rich, hearty laughter rang out in the room.

"Why are you laughing, Sheriff?" Bill asked irritably.

Eric was laughing so hard that he actually had to wipe away a bloody tear. "Do you not know the laws under the Authority?" he asked, suddenly deadly serious. "In truth, the customs set forth before either you or I was made?"

"I believe I do," Bill stated confidently.

"No, you do not," Eric's voice got quieter. "She is not my property. She is my Bonded. Now, if she were my slave, or my pet, you would be entitled. As such, you are not."

Sookie was done with playing the submissive. She stood up and stalked over to Bill. "You dirty piece of shit!" she yelled at him. "You were trying to order Eric to give me to you!" And she reached up and slapped him.

Bill's fangs came out. "Sookie, you are going to regret striking your king!" His hand went up, and suddenly Eric was there between them.

"I told you not to touch her!" Eric exclaimed.

"You are not my king!" Sookie screamed from behind Eric.

The security guards had run into the room, but were at a loss. Their king was the one in the wrong and they were loath to defend him.

Eric swiftly took control. "Your Majesty, you know that you deserved that!" he said matter-of-factly. "Sookie is not a plaything to be passed between us. How can you claim to have ever loved her if you will treat her this way?" His voice had changed, now seething with anger and contempt.

"Deserved or not, she struck me!" Bill fumed. "I am entitled to see her punished for that." He refused to look at Sookie, ashamed and embarrassed at his own actions.

"Oh, she will be punished, rest assured," Eric told him smoothly. "Nothing you could do would have nearly the effect that I have on her." While Bill looked the other way, Eric reassured Sookie with a loving smile and a wink. She lost her fear instantly. "Now, here is what is going to happen," Eric explained to Bill like he was a simpleton. Which, of course, they both thought he was. "You will report to the Authority that I wish to pledge to my Bonded, and you will not interfere with the process."

Bill turned back around and nodded, reserved. "Sookie, I am sorry for my actions. I was…"

"Yes, she has that effect on me too," Eric interrupted him, stroking Sookie's face. She was back to playing the submissive with him and she turned her cheek into his palm, closing her eyes and smiling serenely. She had no further wish to talk to Bill at all.

"Where is Bubba?" Eric suddenly asked of Bill. "I would like for Sookie to meet him." At Sookie's inquiring look, he explained. "Love, I want you to meet BUBBA, the Vampire who was helping Bill to watch your house last night. BUBBA wants to meet you as well."

Sookie couldn't understand why Eric was making such a big deal out of the name of this Vampire, but she was willing to go along. "OK Eric, I'd love to meet Bubba."

At that moment, Bubba walked into the room, having been summoned by one of Bill's guards. Sookie's jaw almost hit the floor. Eric again took control of the situation. "Bubba, this is my Sookie, the lady you have been keeping safe. Sookie, this is Bubba." Eric held out his hand to Sookie, who stood up out of her chair, and then he kissed the back of her hand. Eric placed Sookie's hand in Bubba's outstretched one. Bubba clumsily mimicked Eric's action of kissing her hand and then smiled, a little embarrassed, winning her heart immediately.

"So happy to meet you Bubba!" she smiled sweetly at him, and he looked at Eric and nodded. Bubba now knew that Bill had lied to him, because Sookie smelled of Eric in every way. She was full of more than just his blood. He smiled bashfully back at Sookie.

"Did I hear tell you were gettin' pledged, Miss Sookie?" he wanted to know.

Sookie smiled and stepped back into Eric's embrace. "Yes, we are," she told him, kissing Eric on the cheek.

"It would be my honor to sing at your ceremony," Bubba told her shyly.

This surprised even Eric! Bubba did not like reminders of his former self and he rarely if ever performed for the Vampires or anybody else. Mostly he stayed with whomever he was working for at the time. He was handed around like Vampiredom's best kept secret. For obvious reasons he had to be kept out of the spotlight.

"We will be honored to accept," Eric said with a huge smile. What a coup it would be for Bubba to sing for his Sookie in front of the Authority! "Now, we have to be going. We have many things to do this night!"

"I was so pleased to meet you Bubba!" Sookie smiled, holding her hand out to Bubba one more time. At Eric's nod, Bubba kissed her hand again. He was smitten.

"Me too, Miss Sookie. Mr. Eric!" Bubba nodded respectfully at Eric as they turned to go.

Bill walked them to the door, ever the gracious host. "Eric, by the way, please make sure that you do." At Eric's inquiring look, he went on. "Punish her!" With that he leered at Sookie, causing Eric to move between them.

"The next time you look at or speak to her that way will be the day you meet your final death," Eric said quietly. "She deserves your respect, you jackass!" Then he clapped Bill on the back a little too hard, causing the younger Vampire to stumble a little. "We will wait for the Authority to contact us about the ceremony," He said loudly for the benefit of the others in the entryway. Then, taking Sookie in his arms, he swept her off her feet and carried her out the door. "You did well, Love," he whispered, proud of her.

"I loathe him!" Sookie seethed.

"Did you see the way he looked at you?" Eric asked, winking at her. They both broke out laughing at that, the sound carrying back to Bill who was still on the porch. He couldn't figure out what they would find funny.

As soon as they were off the "royal" property, Eric left the ground and flew them to the front door of the house, where he let them in and reactivated all of the doors. He set Sookie on her feet and stalked her into the living room, growling. "My king has ordered me to punish you," he said, his voice dripping with menace and sex, his eyes glowing. She backed away from him, not really trying to get away from him, and he reached out and ripped her T-shirt down the front. He HAD to see her in that half-bra that he had been thinking about nonstop. "Lover, you are in such trouble!" He dropped his fangs and licked them, still stalking her.

"I am?" She pretended not to have a clue. The flow of lust back and forth in the bond was almost palpable in the room. She batted her eyes at him. "Why, whatsoever are you going to do to me?" He reached out for her again and she jumped back, knowing that this time it wouldn't anger him.

Eric gave her his most predatory grin, knowing he was about to lose patience in their game of cat and mouse. He reached out and caught her around the waist, pulling her close and setting his mouth on those luscious nipples of hers. One hand was full of breast while the other was kneading her ass cheek, still clad in denim but not for long. "I am going to FUCK you so hard, that you won't be able to walk for a week!"

"Such language you use! Oh my stars!" She put a hand to her forehead to play "damsel in distress."

He tore his own shirt from his body and flung it across the room. "You like it when I use language! You want me to tell you I am going to FUCK you. Before I FUCK you, I am going to tie you down, and then maybe I'll FUCK that hot little mouth of yours too!"

"No, please kind sir, I will do anything!" She pretended to struggle against him.

"Oh, yes, you will do anything, and everything I want!" He threw her over his shoulder and headed upstairs to the bedroom, where he proceeded to make good on all of his threats.

Outside the house, unbeknownst to either of them, a lone figure perched in a tree just yards from the bedroom window. The king had followed behind them as they returned home and had heard the exchange in the front room. The shutters on the house may have been break-in proof, but they weren't sound-proof. At least not to one with Vampire hearing, anyway. He'd had to find out for sure whether or not Sookie had been forced in any way by Eric, and he had to know what kind of "punishment" Eric would inflict on Sookie. Listening to her laughter mixed with Eric's playful growls, not to mention the soft sighs and whispers that he could barely make out followed by screams of pleasure from both of them, he had his answer. Concentrating on the sounds of Sookie having an orgasm , screaming Eric's name louder than she had ever said his, he had pulled himself out of his pants and was so overcome by his own stroking that he fell out of the tree.

Inside the house, Eric and Sookie were laying quietly after Sookie's climax of just seconds before when Eric raised his head abruptly, pulling her close to his body. He had heard something outside.

"What?" Sookie began to say, and Eric shook his head, holding up one finger to his lips. Then he pointed to her head and made a gesture out and around. She understood it to mean that he wanted her to scan the area around the house again, so she closed her eyes and did so. She was easily able to sense one void outside the house, almost directly beneath the bedroom window, and nobody else anywhere until she began to sense guards at Bill's place. She easily recognized the void – Bill – and had to stifle her laughter. Eric looked at her quizzically and she pulled his head down to whisper ever-so-softly in his ear. He stared at her in disbelief and she nodded. Then they both grinned at each other. Eric began growling loudly at her, taking her nipple in his teeth which made her shriek with the pain-pleasure of it. He began thrusting deeply inside of her again and she caught on, moaning loudly and saying Eric's name over and over and trying not to laugh out loud. They enjoyed a playful and rather loud session of lovemaking, finding release together in just minutes. Sookie made sure that she said Eric's name more than she normally would; near the end saying "Eric, Eric, Eric," every time he thrust into her.

Eric interjected "mine!" and "you are mine!" into the conversation, finally demanding in the throes of passion just before they both climaxed, "Who do you belong to?"

"You, Eric, I am yours!" she screamed at him, which brought him to the euphoria he was seeking. Sookie screamed out his name again while he let loose the Viking war cry. As the aftershocks died down, they grinned at each other and Sookie closed her eyes to scan the surrounding area. All she sensed was the void that was Bill moving swiftly back toward his own property. Satisfied that they could no longer be heard, they both broke out into peals of laughter.

This, for Eric, was the perfect time to bring up what he planned to do with the rest of their night. "I can not believe that he came over here to listen! He has stooped to a new low!" Eric exclaimed.

Always kind-hearted, Sookie tried to defend Bill. "We don't know that's why he was over here," she said. Eric gave her a look that said 'Come on, really?' and she laughed. "OK, I guess I can't think of any other reason why he would have come over here. Are you behind on your taxes or something?" she teased Eric.

Eric decided to try to give Bill a little credit. A little. "He may have been concerned for your safety knowing that I am here with you. When I confronted him last night about having a spy on your property he thought I was forcing you to be with me."

"Well he'll just have to get over himself," Sookie exclaimed, rolling her eyes. "I hope we just demonstrated that I am with you because I want to be!" She flounced out of the bed and stretched her arms over her head, enjoying the way Eric's fangs came down as he watched. "C'mon, can we go take a shower now?" Eric smiled and got up, holding his hand out to her so they could enter the bathroom together.

After they had gotten cleaned up and dressed again, they found themselves downstairs with Eric sitting on the floor in front of Sookie, who was perched on the couch and again fussing with his hair. He had already become completely addicted to her touch and this little scene of domesticity felt completely natural. This time she was running her fingers through it over and over, removing the tangles and drying it gradually. Eric had noticed the boxes he had ordered sitting on the front porch when they had come home from Bill's place. "Sookie, there is something else that we need to discuss," he stated, taking the elastic band from where it was wrapped around her hand and tying back his own hair. He stood up.

Sookie knew that he wasn't making idle chit-chat. The bond told her that he had something very serious to talk to her about. She smiled up at him and waited expectantly.

"Sookie, what just happened with Bill strengthens my resolve even more in what I am about to say," he began. "I know how you love your home and your independence but I find myself having to insist that you come to live with me, at least for the time being."

She had known that eventually he would bring up something like this. "I can think about it Eric, but…"

"No buts," he interrupted her. "You do not understand what I am saying. Finding out that Russell Edgington is back on the loose and the actions of Bill Compton have convinced me that this is no time for negotiations. I have had boxes delivered here and they are waiting on the front porch. I will help you pack what you wish to have with you, and we will go to my home, tonight."

"Eric…" She saw the logic in Eric's plan and tried to form words to protest. She couldn't think of any. "Can't we stay here?"

He liked the fact that she used "we" in her sentence. At least she wasn't thinking of separating from him. "It is too dangerous here. We are miles from any of my people and vulnerable to attack. Everyone knows where you live, Sookie! Nobody knows where I live."

"Won't I be putting you in danger then?" she wanted to know.

"Somewhat, yes, but I accept that as part of my responsibility to keep you safe." He told her, pacing around the room. "I cannot abandon my business or my duties as Sheriff indefinitely," he continued. "

But there is no way that I will leave you here alone for any length of time!"

"But Bill is right across the property!" she told him.

He couldn't believe how naïve she was. He turned, knelt down in front of her, and took her by the shoulders. "Sookie, Bill is one of the reasons why you are not safe here! As king, he could order me away on some bogus assignment, forcing me to leave you here alone! Do you realize that he can come here in my absence? Because you no longer own the property you cannot rescind his invitation. You know this! He can remove you and lock you away, claiming that I am a threat to you. The authority would become involved, but who knows what he might do to you before I can get things straightened out and get you away from him? He is stalking you, Sookie!"

"He was just jealous, Eric!" she insisted. "He heard us! He knows now that I want to be with you! He won't…"

"Sookie, will you listen to yourself?" Eric bellowed. This startled her. Eric never raised his voice. "How can you continue to trust him? He hired someone to spy on you! But when there was an intruder on this property reported to him, he did not send anyone to investigate! He was over there having a party with a couple of women!" Eric pinched the bridge of his nose, imagining that even he might get a migraine from this conversation. He could not believe Sookie's inability to see Bill for what he truly was.

"How do you know that?" she demanded, focusing in on the women Eric mentioned and seeing red. Had Eric been involved with them?

"I told you, I was over there Sookie!" he yelled at her. "He tried to get me to stay there and party with him, to be unfaithful to you! How can you still harbor any trust whatsoever for him?"

Sookie was thunderstruck by this news. She didn't know what to react to first, the fact that Bill had tried to get Eric to stray from her, or that he hadn't investigated when he'd been told somebody was snooping around over here _after_ he'd taken it upon himself to get Bubba to watch her place. She did know one thing. Eric was right. Bill couldn't be trusted. She stood up and began to pace next to where Eric was standing, his arms folded in a posture of stubborn insistence. "Why is it," she began in a tightly controlled voice, "that I always seem to put my trust in the wrong place?" She couldn't look at Eric just yet. "Time and time again, you've stood there telling me the truth, and you were the one I refused to listen to!" Eric didn't respond or change his expression. "And here I am about to do it again! I'm so sorry, Eric!" She walked to him, head down, tentatively putting her hands on his biceps as he stood there unyielding. "I feel you!" she told him. "You're not lying to me. It's you that I need to trust here because even my own judgment is wrong! I am finally seeing Bill for what he is! Will you forgive me, Eric? What do we have to do?"

Eric didn't really know what to do. He was, for once, at a loss. He was hurt. Once again Sookie had been about to defend Bill, take his side over Eric's. Even as she claimed to love and trust Eric she had tried to paint Bill's treachery in a different light, giving Bill the benefit of the doubt and leaving Eric in the cold. Now she said she was sorry. Was he ready to believe her? He closed his eyes, fighting the instinct to crush her to him, force her to his will. But, actually, if she told the truth, that wasn't necessary. She was here, with him, not with Bill. Maybe they both needed to calm down. Sookie was still touching him. He couldn't push her away, not after he had worked so hard to bring her to him. He reached out and drew her into his arms. "This is the kind of thing we have to fight, Sookie!" he said softly but passionately. "There is nobody I love, nobody I trust, more than you." He realized the truth of his words as he said them. At some point, even Pam had taken a back seat to Sookie.

She couldn't deny his love or his sincerity. The blood bond wouldn't let him lie. "Get the boxes, Eric. Even if I don't finish packing, we'll go tonight! Fuck Bill! You're right. I'm not safe from him and I'm not safe here. I don't want him to pull us apart!"

They embraced for a long moment and then Eric deactivated the security covering the front door. There were flat bundles of boxes, just as he had ordered. He stepped outside the door and bent down to pick up the first bundle.

That was when Sookie heard a tangle of thoughts, excitement. She was only able to make out a few words – 'There he is!' "No!" She exclaimed. She ran to the door just in time to see a head pop up over the bushes a few yards from the porch, and the person was holding a gun pointed at Eric! "Eric!" she screamed, throwing herself between the gunman and Eric just as the shot went off. She felt a blinding pain shoot through her shoulder. 'Not again!' she thought. She had just been shot a few weeks ago in the middle of the witch war.

Eric took only a split second to realize what was happening. His fangs came out and he snarled angrily, his first instinct to take off after the dead man who had dared threaten them. For that was what this man was. Dead. Just as soon as Eric could get his hands on him! But Sookie was lying on the ground, bleeding. He couldn't leave her. What if there were more? He heard scurrying in the underbrush; whoever it was, was running in the direction of the road. "Listen well, whoever you are!" Eric shouted loud enough for anyone across three counties to hear. "You have made the worst, and the last mistake of your miserable life! I will find you! You had better run but you cannot run fast enough to escape my wrath!" He heard a car speeding away in the distance. But his first priority was Sookie. He fell to his knees next to her. "Sookie? Sookie! Are you all right?"

"God Dammit!" she suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs. She was conscious, holding onto a bleeding wound just below her left shoulder. "Why can't they just leave us alone Eric?" She held out her good arm to him, crying.

He could see that she was not seriously injured and he tenderly picked her up, carried her inside, and set her on the couch. He ran back to the door and threw the rest of the boxes inside before reactivating the security door. He needed to get some things moving but first he had to see to her. "Let me look, Love!" he said softly. At her nod, he ripped the shoulder of the shirt that she was wearing, exposing a very messy wound. The bullet had gone clean through but the wound was full of… splinters?

"Eric, it was a wooden bullet!" she exclaimed, reaching over to pick off some of the splinters stuck to the outside of her arm. She was angry. "Those mother fuckers were after you, not me!" She used all of her strength to pull Eric close to her and he allowed it. He could feel how shaken she was.

"Sookie, I have to heal you!" he said forcefully. "The bleeding is not stopping! You are going into shock!" His face had gone pale, paler than normal. He could not let her continue to bleed. "Listen to me! Take my blood, now!" He bit into his wrist and first bathed both sides of her arm with the flowing blood. He knew it would hurt her, but he used his fingers to push his blood inside the wound to stop her bleeding. She screamed but gave him a grateful look. Before the gash on his wrist could heal, he forced it to her lips. She understood the urgency and drank. When the wound closed, he reopened it and gave her more. She had fed him well this night and the night before. He was able to heal her completely without feeling any weakness of his own.

"Get Bill on the phone, Eric!" she demanded. As he started to get up to move to his phone, she said "Wait!" in a softer voice. He knelt back down next to her and she began taking his shirt off of him. He helped her, and then she reached for his waistband.

"What are you doing, Sookie?" He was confused. Did she want sex, now?

"I have to see you Eric!" she said shakily. "I have to know you are in one piece! Please Eric!" She was getting frantic again.

He understood then, and stood up, shedding everything and turning around for her. She relaxed visibly. "I think you just wanted to see me naked!" he teased, winking at her. She gave a weak smile and held out her arms to him. He came to her and held her. She clung to him like a life preserver in the middle of the ocean. "Sookie," he said gently. "I have to make some calls. Get people moving on this."

"Can't you do that with me attached to you?" she asked, a little bit irritably, refusing to let go of him.

"My phone is over there," he told her, pointing. Then she held out her hand like she had done it a million times before, and the phone flew across the room to her!

They both froze.

"What just happened?" They said in unison. She looked at her hand like it was foreign to her.

"We must tell no one of this!" Eric said. "Do you think you can do it again?" He knew that if they could harness this new power of hers, it could be a great asset!

"I don't know!" She looked at one of the pictures on her mantelpiece, held out her hand to it, and it flew into her hand! "How am I doing this Eric?" She was a little bit afraid.

"I do not know!" Eric then thought of Godric. Godric would know, if he would appear to them again! He looked around the room, half expecting Godric to appear just because he had thought of him. Of course, he didn't. "I must call Pam before we involve Bill. I think you know who will be the more efficient source of assistance here," Eric said, and Sookie laughed at the small joke. Of course Pam and Eric's people would do a better job of tracking down whoever had just tried to kill Eric. Sookie just wanted to yell at Bill, which was why she'd demanded that Eric call him. Eric opened his phone and called Pam. They began speaking Swedish in one of those Vampire-fast conversations that Sookie wouldn't have been able to follow if they'd been speaking English.

Her first instinct was to cry, but she had already done that. She wouldn't be of any use to Eric if she turned into a basket case. But the thought that she had almost lost him – again – was too much for her to bear. If she had heard that Were's thoughts a split second later things might be very different now. She couldn't lose Eric! She had to stand next to him and fight! But they had some time before the troops descended. She would indulge her need for reassurance from him. She continued to cling to him, shaking, patting parts of his body over and over as if to make sure there weren't any gaping holes anywhere.

Eric was unfamiliar with this level of concern from anyone. He knew that Pam loved him, but in times when he had been injured, or nearly injured, Pam had remained cool and calm on the surface. Sookie was much different. She chose to wear her heart on her sleeve in this moment with Eric, and he was touched. This was the Sookie he'd wanted for himself so badly that he could taste it. She had thrown herself in front of a bullet for him! He would never have asked that of her.

"I guess we're even now?" she joked with him as he hung up the phone with Pam.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You took bullets for me in Dallas. I guess it was time I paid you back!" She laughed self-deprecatingly.

Suddenly he was angry. "You will not do that again! Do you hear me?" He shook her slightly. "You could have been killed!" The trauma was only just starting to affect him. How lucky he was that she had only been hit in her arm! He pulled her into his arms and held tightly. "I should punish you Sookie!" he stated, his voice full of emotion. "You disobeyed me. I told you never to put yourself in danger for me again!"

Sookie had never seen Eric in such a state. He was usually stoic, in control, very much in command of his emotions. This was a very different Eric, not much different from the cursed Eric who had been so open about his feelings. "I'm right here," she told him. "Punish me if you want. I'm not gonna just stand there and let some asshole murder you!"

He looked at her and his eyes were rimmed in blood. ".." he ordered her through bared teeth and fangs. She decided just not to answer. She licked the blood from his face and they held each other.

Just a few minutes later there was a knock at the door. Sookie used her telepathy to detect one void, who she recognized as Pam. Eric stood up and got dressed before letting her in. Pam took one look around the room and said "What the hell happened here?"

"Pam, you will stay here and pack up everything in this house. I do not want anyone else in here!"

"You brought me here to move Sookie's stuff?" Pam asked incredulously. "What about the fucker who tried to kill you?" She bared her fangs. "Sookie, you look well." She smiled at Sookie, grateful for what Sookie had done to save her Master.

"I will go out now and follow his trail. I want his scent in my memory!" Eric stood up and disappeared from the room without another word.

"I take it you two have made up?" Pam asked, raising her eyebrows in a perfect imitation of Eric.

Sookie blushed. "Pam, you know him better than anybody," she began, unsure how to phrase her question. "Is he.. OK?"

"I think he's better than OK now, Sookie," Pam said seriously. "He drove me nuts for weeks. You know he came here, almost every night! You wouldn't talk to him but he had to see you. I finally pushed his ass out the door. I told him, 'man up! Go get what you want!'"

"So this is all your fault!" Sookie joked, smiling fondly at Pam.

"I guess it is," Pam said slyly. "Now do me a favor. Don't fuck it up!" She came over and sat on the couch next to Sookie. "He's really putting himself out there for you Sookie. I've never seen him like this before. Don't you dare hurt him or you will have me to deal with!" She smiled, baring her fangs at Sookie. It was a threat, but a friendly one. Pam knew that Sookie would take care of Eric but she had to put her two cents in.

"I'll try!" Sookie said shyly, smiling back. Then she thought of something. "Pam, did Eric tell you that he and I…?"

"About the pledging?" Pam said brightly. "Yeah, he did. I'm happy for both of you!"

Sookie had to confess that she needed Pam's help. "I've never even been to one of these before!" she exclaimed. "I don't know what to wear, who to invite…? Will you help me?"

Planning a social event was one of Pam's favorite things to do. "You and Eric will need to match so we'll have to buy your outfits together," she mused staring off into space. "I wonder who will officiate, since we're without a Magister at the moment? Oh God, I hope it doesn't have to be Bill Compton!" Both she and Sookie made faces of disgust, and were laughing together when Eric came back in.

"I see my girls are getting along nicely!" he beamed at them. "Anything I should know?" He looked between the two, wondering how Pam had gotten Sookie to laugh.

"Planning your pledging!" Pam told him. "I have a lot of work to do. Do you know when it is yet?"

"No, Pam, not yet," Eric explained. "We have only just notified the.. ahem.. king." He rolled his eyes and everybody in the room was laughing, when the devil himself walked through the door. Eric had called him just before coming back in the house.

"You need to knock when entering my house!" Sookie yelled at him, starting to advance. Eric grabbed her arm and gently pulled her to his side. She kissed Eric's cheek and said "sorry I was rude, Eric."

Bill watched the scene with more disgust, still trying to think of a way to separate Sookie from Eric so that he could talk her out of this nonsense of marrying him. "What is this nonsense about Sookie being shot?" he demanded. "She looks perfectly fine to me!" He folded his arms and tried to assume a powerful posture in his expensive suit, but he looked foolish next to Eric, who simply wore track pants and a T-shirt. Two Weres had stationed themselves outside the door of the house. At least they seemed to respect someone else's home.

"I have healed Sookie's injury," Eric said. "She foolishly jumped in front of a bullet meant for me." He looked at Sookie with a mixture of pride and censure.

"She did what?" Bill strode over to where they were standing and finally saw Sookie's torn T-shirt and the blood everywhere. He reached out as if to inspect the area and Eric bared his fangs. Bill held his hands up in a gesture of surrender while Sookie huddled closer to Eric. "How do you know the bullet was meant for you?" He addressed the question to Eric.

"The bullet was made of wood," Eric stated. The room was suddenly silent. Even Bill Compton had to take note if there was a group running around Bon Temps trying to kill prominent Vampires with wooden bullets. "Sookie heard what he was thinking just as he popped his head out to shoot."

Everyone turned to look at Sookie. "I can't always read Weres. Their thoughts are kind of scratchy, kind of like a TV where you're trying to adjust the antenna. You get a few words but mostly it's just interference. Then I heard 'There he is!' and I jumped out. All I wanted to do was push Eric out of the way but I ended up getting shot. Again." She sighted and pouted as she leaned on Eric for support.

"It would seem, then, that Eric was the target," Bill stated emphatically. Then his eyes lit up. "Sookie, I will have to remove you from his custody until the culprit is found." He started to come forward again.

This time not only did Eric growl and bare his fangs, but Pam stood shoulder to shoulder with him while Sookie backed up behind him and yelled "Like Hell Bill!"

Bill gave a malevolent smile and gestured for his two guards to come into the room. They did, pointing their guns at Eric and Pam. "Now, you will come with me Sookie!" He pushed Eric out of the way and grabbed her arm.

"NO!" she screamed, trying desperately to wrench her arm from his grasp, but Bill was stronger. He managed to drag her halfway across the room before white light shot out of both of her hands, momentarily blinding everyone in the room. When the light went out, Bill was on the floor and Sookie held both guns that had formerly been in the hands of the security guards. Everyone was staring at her, dumbfounded. "Eric!" she screamed and started to shake, and he was there instantly, his arms around her, soothing her.

"Shhh, Sookie, I am here Love. I am here." He glared menacingly at Bill while he rubbed her back and she sobbed into his chest. He took both guns and smoothly handed them to Pam, who removed the clips and tossed them back to the security guards. "What is wrong with you Bill? Has she not gone through enough in one night? She was shot less than an hour ago, and all you can think about is getting your slimy hands on her because of your jealousy!"

"She will be safer with me!" Bill insisted, finally getting up off the ground and dusting himself off. "You know, I can still take her. I can have her arrested for assault!"

"Give it a rest Bill!" Pam piped up in the back. "You were the one doing the assaulting!"

Once again Eric had to take control. "You will do nothing of the sort!" he stated in his cool, calm voice. "Now, you and I will take your guards and walk out to where the shooter was. We will become familiar with the scent and do some investigating." Eric had already investigated thoroughly, and he had found another one of those swastika buttons. He just wanted to get Bill out of the same room as Sookie. Still addressing Bill, he continued. "You will bring in an investigator to find out who did this. I will be pressing charges!" Then he addressed Sookie. "Love, I am going to take Bill out to investigate what happened. You are safe here with Pam. Pam?" He motioned for her to hold on to Sookie, who was still visibly upset.

"Bill, you get out of my house!" she cried, turning to face him. "What was that word Alcide said he used with Debbie? I abhor.. no, I abjure you, Bill Compton! Does that work with Vampires?" She stood there between Eric and Pam while Bill narrowed his eyes at her and his fangs came out. "I don't know why you keep trying to get me away from Eric but it won't work! I am with Eric! Get it through your thick head! I am Eric's! I belong one hundred percent to Eric. I gave him everything, Bill!" She turned again to cling to Eric's side, and he held her close.

"Why would you do that Sookie?" Bill shouted. "You do not know what Eric is. What he will do. What he… what he does with women! Do you remember Yvetta?" Bill was horrified that Sookie would end up chained in the basement of Fangtasia for Eric's entertainment.

Sookie knew exactly what Bill was talking about, and in the midst of this horrible argument, despite the fact that she had been shot and then traumatized by Bill, she stuck her hand down the back of Eric's pants and pinched him lightly, making him jump. She stared up at him with lustful eyes full of promise. Eric let himself grow hard for all the world to see as he stared back at her with the same expression. Then Sookie turned back to Bill. "Eric can do whatever he wants to me! I enjoy everything Eric does to me Bill! And it's none of your goddamned business! I will never leave Eric! If you somehow manage to take me from Eric, I will make your life so miserable that you will want to vacation in hell! Do I make myself clear, Bill?"

Eric was proud of Sookie for finally standing up to Bill. The two security guards, standing behind him, were nodding their approval of her tirade. They had seen Bill repeatedly tell Sookie how much he loved her and then as soon as she would leave, Bill would bring in woman after woman. They were loyal to their king but they knew what a letch he was.

Bill seemed to recover his composure, and he stood to his full height. "Fine but…" He sputtered a bit. "This isn't over, Sookie!"

"Oh, I think it is very much over, Bill!" Eric interjected smoothly. "She is my Bonded. She will be pledged to me. She has told you over and over that this is of her own free will. By law I can forbid you from even speaking to her, because she is mine. Even if you are king. You know this to be true. And I do that now. From this day, you will not speak to her. And Sookie," he turned to her, "You will not speak to him either." Am I clear?

"Yes, Eric!" Sookie's voice was clear and calm. Eric took her hand, feeling the emotional turmoil inside of her through the bond and hoping to reassure her. Pam took her other hand and wrapped an arm around Sookie.

"You boys go on out and check out that trail," Pam drawled, giving her most charming smile to the security guards. "Sookie and I will be fine here!"

Eric went to Sookie and hugged her close, and they whispered to each other for a moment. She nodded up at him and kissed him sweetly. Bill seethed as he watched this exchange. He could see her trust and love for Eric and wondered how it had come about. He had tried his best to paint a picture of Eric as an evil womanizer in front of Sookie. How had that been turned around on himself?

As soon as the men left, Pam turned to Sookie. "Where do you want to start?" Sookie looked at her, confused. "Packing!" Pam exclaimed. "Eric wants you out of here tonight and I am sure there are things you will need to take with you! I will tell you that he has had a truckload of groceries delivered to Fangtasia, and I have had them transported to his home tonight. You will have plenty to eat."

"When did he start planning this?" Sookie exclaimed.

Pam could see that Sookie's hackles were being raised, so she decided to sit her down for a girl-to-girl talk. "Sookie, do you see what you're doing?" She said firmly.

"No, what am I doing?" Sookie asked, confused.

"The same thing you always do! You're being an idiot, again!" Pam wasn't going to mince words here. "Every time Eric tries to do something for you, it makes you angry. You've got to stop that! You're his now! Completely his! Can't you just trust him? Let him take care of you? Why does this piss you off?"

Sookie thought about it. "Well, I don't like him just making decisions for me like that!"

"Newsflash, Madonna!" Pam said, exasperated. "He _is_ making all your decisions now! You gave him that right! Do you want to be fighting with him over stupid shit like this for the rest of your life? Get over it!" Pam rolled her eyes. "I'll be up in the bedroom packing all of your clothes. Come join me when you grow a brain." She stood and took the steps to the bedroom at Vamp speed.

Sookie sat there for a few minutes in a huff. Who the hell was Pam to tell her off like that? Eric needed to tell her about things like this before he just did them! Didn't he? It was so hard for Sookie to acclimate herself to what she had done. She had given in to Eric, and she had given in so completely and irrevocably that there was nothing left to do but learn how to accept her new way of life. The first time she had heard Eric's voice it had drawn her from across the room at Fangtasia. Bill had told her Eric was the oldest thing in there. Eric had spoken to someone and it had carried to her. His voice was so quiet but commanding. It had made her wet, and maybe that was what had caused him to suddenly look up and notice her. Her insides clenched at the memory and she felt herself moistening for him even now. When she had been hurt by the maenad, it was Eric's voice that she had held on to, not Bill's, as she was cleaned up and healed. When he'd implored her to trust him at the Fellowship of the Sun… well, she'd already confessed that one to him. It felt natural to let him command her in bed, as he had done when he was cursed. Now she'd given him the right to command everything. Every time he spoke it was like a piece of fishing line was tied around her clitoris, and it would tug, making her throb for him. She wanted to give over to him. She'd wanted to give over to him so badly that it scared her, and that was why she'd fought it for so long. So now he had gone ahead and made arrangements to have food for her delivered to where they would be living. Was that really an offensive act? Maybe he was just trying to take care of her and see to her comfort without her having to worry about it. He was like that. Always thoughtful. She sighed. Pam was right. This was ridiculous. It was such a stupid thing to fight about. She got up, intending to join Pam, but began to worry about Eric. He had been gone with Bill and the security guards for quite some time now. She carefully scanned out on the property to see if she could tell where they were. They were out near the road, probably where a car had taken off. Two voids, two Weres. Now what were the Weres thinking?

'Shouldn't be doing this,' one came through.

'Won't help him kill Northman. I wonder if Northman will hire me…' came another one.

Cold fear crept up her spine. Eric was in danger. What was Bill out there planning? Nothing seemed to be happening at the moment because the thoughts of the two Weres were calm.

'Find out where that food truck is going…' came a thought from one of the Weres.

Food truck? Hadn't Pam mentioned a truck full of food? They were somehow tracking the food truck so they would know where Eric lived!"

'Edgington…' Oh shit! One of them was thinking about Russell! She ran up the stairs as fast as she could.

Pam had already packed the entire contents of her closet, stripped the bed, taken down all the pictures and packed everything neatly in boxes. She sat as though she had been waiting for Sookie to join her. "Well? Did you think about what I said?" She raised her eyebrows.

"Pam! There's no time for that! We have to do something!" Sookie cried frantically. "Eric's in danger! I think Bill is going to try to kill him, or somebody is! I heard one of the Weres think Russell's name!"

Pam stood up. "Are you sure, Sookie?"

Sookie was jumping up and down and shaking her hands. "Yes, Goddammit Pam! We have to go get Eric! NOW! And you have to stop that truck from delivering the food to his house!

* * *

><p>Is someone trying to kill Eric, yet again? Who is behind it all? Is it Bill? Russell? Someone else?<p>

I hope you've enjoyed the chapter and will send me your reviews! Thank you for reading!


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